


What The Night Sky Gave Us

by circumspective_cryptid



Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: Brotherhood, Gen, Implied/Referenced Child Abuse, Marauders era, Prejudice, alternative universe, more tags and characters will be added as the story progresses
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-10-17
Updated: 2020-02-15
Packaged: 2020-12-21 08:00:38
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 7
Words: 26,509
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21071564
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/circumspective_cryptid/pseuds/circumspective_cryptid
Summary: The tale of the Black brothers but not quite like we know it, because one fateful night changes everything.(This is an au taking place in the marauders era, however the first two chapters can be considered canon compliant.)Not abandoned! Update is coming eventually





	1. Snapshots of Childhood

**Author's Note:**

> I’m new to this but I hope you like it. Also, this chapter could be considered more of a prologue than an actual chapter.

Sirius was four and Regulus was three when Sirius first showed his accidental magic. It had been at a family get-together, a most cultured affair where everyone decks themselves in the most lavish off clothing and tell semi-real tales about their children's achievements in an attempt to one up each other. 

Sirius had been playing hide and seek with Regulus and Narcissa. He had been hiding behind some curtains when Bellatrix had showed up, stared Sirius strait in the eyes, knocked down an ornate vase and then proceeded to (very loudly) berate Sirius for it. 

With tears in his eyes for the unfairness of it all, Sirius had tried to explain to his mother that it wasn’t his fault and that was when the curtains caught on fire. 

In the relief of knowing that her heir was not a squib the vase had quickly been forgotten and it was one of the rare occasions were Walburga had hugged one of her sons. 

Though Sirius later wouldn't remember the event he would always know what to answer when asked about his first accidental magic because it was a tale that would be told on many future family get-togethers.

Sirius was five and Regulus was four when Sirius had gotten lost in Diagon Alley. 

He had only wandered off a few feet to lock at an interesting cat but when he had turned around to beckon Regulus over Regulus and their mother were gone. 

He had been close to tears when he felt a hand on his shoulder. Behind him stood a gaunt-looking man with severe scars littering his skin. 

The man had crouched down to be at eye-level with Sirius and asked if he was lost and needed help. 

The man looked nice enough and Sirius had just been about to accept his help when Walburga had shown up, yanked Sirius away and screamed at the man to leave her son alone or she would make sure that he ended up in Azkaban where he belonged. 

That evening Walburga had told her children that the man in Diagon Alley had been a werewolf, a vicious monster who takes children from their parents and eats them or, even worse, turns them into a monster too. 

Sirius barely slept i wink that night, thinking about what could have happened if his mother had arrived even a minute later.

Sirius was six and Regulus was five when their cousin Andromeda got her Hogwarts-letter and the brothers spent that week discussing all that they would do when they got to Hogwarts. 

Sirius would arrive first and it would be hard without his brother but he would have Andi and Sissy and one year later Regulus would come and Sirius would show Regulus all the secrets about the castle and tell him which teachers to look out for. 

Sirius was seven and Regulus was six and the occational accidental fire and exploding glass was not an all too unusual occurrence at number 12 Grimmauld Place. 

Though these occurrences had gotten less charming with the years and Orion often said that “the year Sirius turns eleven can’t come quickly enough so that the boy can learn some control.”

Regulus on the other hand had still not shown any signs of magic and this worried Walburga and Orion greatly. 

This was the year that Sirius and Regulus learnd about something called a squib and about what was behind some of the burn marks on the family tapestry. 

That night Regulus had come into Sirius’ room crying, asking if Sirius would still love him even if he was a squib.

“You are not a squib Regulus.” Sirius had answered.

“But let’s say that I am.”

“Then I will still love you, of course I will, I always will.”

Regulus had slept in Sirius’ room that night and as always when that happened Kreacher had come in early in the morning to urge Regulus to go to his own room before their parents saw.

Sirius was eight and Regulus was seven and they were the best of friends although Sirius sometimes thought that his brother was rather boring. 

Once Sirius had suggested that they should reenact the Grindelwald-wars, but this time Grindelwald would win, of course. And Regulus had only looked up from his book sighing.

“No one wins in wars Sirius, it’s just about who loses the least, and I don’t wanna play”

“Come on, don’t you want to feel what it’s like to be a hero, fighting for wizarding kind” Sirius had tried, holding up a quill like a wand and playfully showing Regulus. 

“No I don’t, leave me alone.”

“Don’t you want to feel the thrill of battle.” Sirius had said as he wiggled the quill in front of Regulus’ face.

“War isn’t thrilling, it’s sad!”

“Your just a coward, if more people were like you Britain would lose all wars.” 

“If more people were like me there wouldn’t be any wars! And I am not a coward!!” Regulus had shouted and then stormed off.

Sirius was nine and Regulus was eight when it finally happened, Regulus performed accidental magic, alas only Sirius saw. 

It had started with Regulus finding a bird with a hurt wing at their front door. 

Regulus had been about to pick it up when Walburga, with a disgusted look on her face, had snapped at Regulus not to touch it and Regulus had reluctantly obeyed. 

All through dinner that evening Regulus had acted as normal, as though he didn’t care about the poor ground-bound creature outside but Sirius knew better. 

Sirius knew that Regulus cared, he always cared about every little living thing that he came across. 

And though Regulus was good at hiding his emotions Sirius could see right through him. Sirius knew him well. Sirius had watched his little brother hide for as long as he could remember.

It was in the way his mouth was a little more tight, how he avoided eye contact even more than usual, how he would just push his food around instead of eating and how every movement he made seemed slower and more deliberate in a way. 

So later that evening, when their parents had retreated to the sitting room, Regulus had snuck outside, retrieved the bird and brought it to his room. 

Regulus and the bird, whom he had decided to call Hubert, had quickly become friends. Regulus had always found it easier to befriend animals than to befriend humans. 

Every day Regulus would sneak food up to Hubert, sometimes with the help of Sirius, and when they didn’t have lessons Sirius would often find Regulus on the floor in his room whispering to Hubert. 

During the time Hubert took up residence in Regulus’ room Regulus and Hubert spent a lot of time together, for the first time Regulus felt free to say whatever he wanted to someone without judgement and Sirius became confused as to why he was jealous of a bird. 

It took their parents six days to find out and Walburga killed Hubert then and there, in front of Regulus’ wardrobe. 

After that Warburga left the room, telling Regulus that he was expected down stairs in ten minutes for his punishment, and Sirius and Regulus were left on their own. 

All Regulus could do was to stare blankly ahead as he slowly nodded and said “Yes ma’am”. 

As Walburga was heard descending the stairs Regulus’ resolve broke. He laid down on his bed and cried with a pillow pressed to his face to stifle the sound. 

After a few minutes he stood up, went over to the mirror above the dresser, took a few steadying breaths, dried his tears and watched all the redness and puffiness of his face disappear as if he hadn't just cried a mere minute ago. 

Sirius was left staring in amazement from the floor as Regulus headed down stairs. 

Sirius would later wonder if this was perhaps not the actual first time that Regulus had performed accidental magic, maybe he had been doing it for years and no one had noticed. 

Because, as it would turn out, Regulus’ accidental magic was nothing like Sirius’, it was not an explosion of raw and intense magic. No Regulus’ early magic did not set fire to curtains or blow up windows, it was subtle, it was precise, to some extent it was even controlled, it truly was everything that Sirius’ magic was not.

Sirius was ten and Regulus was nine and the Black country estate was bustling with people of all ages wearing absurdly lavish clothing in an effort to outdo one another and Sirius was miserable. 

There were several reasons for this, one being that he was wearing long, dark dress-robes in the middle of July. Another one being that he was sure that he was going to mess something up. He often messed things up but it could not happen today. 

His mother had taken him and Regulus aside earlier that day and explained that this was the most important social event of the year, members of every family from the Sacred Twenty-Eight would be present and she would not have them embarrass her. 

Sirius had opened his mouth, about to point out that they both already knew this, it was an annual event after all and she repeated this rant every year. 

But Regulus, knowing his brother well, had opened his eyes wide and glared at Sirius from behind Walburgas’ back, vigorously shaking his head so Sirius had chosen not to say anything. Instead he had just nodded and Regulus had looked very relieved. 

Regulus was also miserable because he hated crowds and the situation was made even worse by the feeling that everyone was staring at him wherever he went. This was not an unfounded feeling as everyone was indeed staring at him, they all wanted to get a good look at the Blacks’ possible squib. 

Sirius had tried explaining to anyone he talked to that he had seen Regulus perform magic several times but no one seemed to believe him. Hence Sirius had decided that it was time to do something drastic. 

Narcissa had performed magic for the first time when Bellatrix had pushed her from a balcony, but Sirius certainly would not be that drastic. 

His plan was simply to scare him a little. 

Knowing that Regulus easely was the jumpiest person Sirius knew he figured that it would not be too difficult and at this party, in front of all these people, would be the best time to do it, then no one would ever question his brother’s magic again. 

The plan was simple, Sirius had found and old toy snake in the nursery of the estate and he had roped Gideon Prewett, who was a few years older than him, into animating it to make it look like a real, alive, snake. Surely if he threw that at Regulus the snake would explode or something. 

Unfortunately Sirius’ aim hadn't been at its best and instead of landing in front of Regulus it had landed in front of a girl named Esther Selwyn who had stood close by. 

Esther had squealed and taken a step backwards. She would have tumbled down the set of stairs behind her if Regulus had not extended his hand and caught her. 

And whilst Sirius would later admit that it had not been his best executed plan it had achieved the desired results. Because at first Regulus’ short arms had not been able to reach Esther, but then they had magically lengthened, right in front of everyone. 

Sirius was eleven and Regulus was nine and a half when Sirius got his Hogwarts-letter. Regulus had cried that night but Sirius had hugged him and told him that he would write to him every week, the year would pass quickly and then they would be together at Hogwarts.


	2. Of Unopened Letters and Train Stations

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hope you enjoy the next instalment of this….shitshow? I also realised that I should probably point out that I own nothing, but honestly which multimilioner is going to sue over fanfiction.

2 september 1971

Dear Regulus, I’m sure the news of my sorting have reached you by now seeing as I got a letter from mother this morning. 

I should have written to you yesterday but I couldn’t find the words so I’m gonna try now. 

When the sorting hat was first placed on my head I was sure I was gonna end up in slytherin but it told me that I belong in gryffindor. 

I know that Andy told us that one can tell the hat where one wants to go but at that moment I was struck with the urge to be where I truly belong, you know, and it told me that I belong in gryffindor. 

Only now I realise what a grave mistake that was, Bella hexed me today, Andy is sending me pitying looks and Sissy won’t even look in my direction. And then there is mother’s letter, I know I mess up a lot but I don’t think I’ve ever disappointed her this much before, I hadn’t realised that me being i slytherin had meant so much to her. 

How angry is she? How angry is father? Do you think it’ll cool down before christmas? Are you mad at me? If so please forgive me, I never meant to make anyone upset. 

Furthermore most of the slytherins are glaring at me wherever I go and the other gryffindors are avoiding me like the plague. 

I’ve asked to be resorted but my head of house says that’s impossible. I really wish that I could fix this but I can’t, I can only wish that I’ll be forgiven in time, I hope it happens soon. 

Anyway, hogwarts is truly magnificent, it’s everything that Andy told us and more.

First-years arrive in boats across the Great Lake instead of in carriages like the older students and the view of the castle you get from the boats is one of the most beautiful things I’ve ever seen. 

The castle is enormous and built like a maze, someone really should make a map of this place, every first-year gets lost, I swear that some of the doors even move. 

On the upside, there are a lot of pictures to ask but they aren’t always very helpful. 

I asked a picture of a knight for directions to transfiguration and he led me on this realy long route that I’m sure was much longer than necessary for it had taken us 40 minutes and McGonagall, my transfiguration teacher and head of house, later told me that it should have taken no more than 8 minuter to get to the classroom from where I had started. 

I suspect the knight just wanted time to finish telling me the story about how he had once “valiantly rescued a young maiden from the claws of the world’s most vicious dragon”. 

I arrived late to transfiguration but thankfully I wasn’t punished. 

The teachers here, at least the ones I’ve met, are generally alright, Mcgonagall can be a little intimidating but no one is as bad as mr. Bulstrode, you have my condolences having to deal with him on your own for a year. 

Anyway, I have to go to bed now, I hope you're good and I will write you again soon.

Yours,  
Sirius

6 september 1971

Dear Regulus, I haven’t received a letter from you so it must have gotten lost which isn’t that surprising especially if it was supposed to arrive in the morning. 

When the morning post arrives here it is truly chaotic, hundreds of owls storm the great hall all at once and often they just drop whatever they’re delivering right into people’s breakfast. 

A dorm-mate of mine received a package yesterday and the owl just dropped it in the porridge of one of my other dorm-mates. The porridge splattered all over him and when he tried to clean his glasses with magic they shattered and he had to finish his breakfast without them, which was funny because he’s practically blind without them. 

His name is James Potter by the way, the one with the glasses. I know the Potters are a bit eccentric but they’re rich and of pure blood so he might be alright when we get to know eachother better. 

Although he can be a whiny, oversensitive prat sometimes. 

On tuesday he tackled me. Actually tackled me! All because I pointed out that someone is a mudblood. I mean it wasn’t a secret, everyone already knew. 

What is wrong with pointing something out that everyone already knows? 

Moreover he has refused to speak to me ever since. Not that I long for his company or anything. It just drives me crazy to have no one at all to talk to. 

My other dorm-mate Peter Pettigrew, also pureblood, isn’t speaking to me either and my third dorm-mate Remus Lupin, halfblood, isn’t really speaking to anyone (doesn’t stop James from talking to him though). 

On another note I have discovered something about hogwarts that you might actually not like, it is very, very, noisy. After the quiet at home all this noise feels a bit overwhelming, even for me, and I often find myself retreating to the library in the evenings, now I almost spend as much time with my nose in a book as you do. 

On that note, you will love the library. There is a restricted sektion which you need a teacher’s permission to access and naturally I itch to explore it but unfortunately i can’t since I’m “only a first-year and doesn’t actually need a book from there”. 

I would have written mother and father to ask them to write to my teachers regarding that but I figured it’s best to let them be for a bit. Are they still cross?

Hope your letter arrives this time,  
Sirius

10 september 1971

Regulus, why aren’t you answering my letters? 

I could really use someone right now. In spite of almost only being alone when I’m in the bathroom, I’m feeling more lonely than ever. You once said that being lonely is not interchangeable with being alone and for the first time I understand what you meant. 

I knew that people would be jealous and maybe even a little resentful of me because of my standing as the Black heir but I never imagined that it would be this bad. Maybe ten words have been spoken to me outside of classes for all of this past week. 

Come on Reg, I really miss you.

Yours truly,  
Sirius

17 september 1971

Regulus Arcturus Black, stop your sulking, get your head out of your ass and respond already. For Merlin’s sake.

Yours angrily,  
Sirius Black (the heir by the way, so if you don’t respond you will regret it when you're older)

18 october 1971

Regulus, I know that you’re angry at me over the sorting and that it might mean that we won’t be able to spend as much time together when you come to Hogwarts but I really need you right now. 

There is so much that I’ve learnt since I came to Hogwarts, not only about magic but about other stuff to. And instead of making things clearer it just makes me confused and I don’t know what to think about stuff now. I don’t know what to think about anything. 

I feel like I’m constantly walking on top of a steep cliff surrounded by very thick fog so that I can't see the edge. The only thing in sharp contrasts right now is you. 

Does that make sense? Am I making sense? Please respond.

Your brother,  
Sirius

20 november 1971

Reg, remember when mother told us that muggleborns (that’s what you’re supposed to say by the way, not mudbloods) get magic because their parents stole it, and that’s why there are squibs? I don’t think that’s true. I’m pretty that’s not true. 

A girl in my year said that her parents didn’t even know about magic before she got her hogwarts-letter. How can you steal something that you don’t even know exist? 

And a muggleborn in second year says his parents don’t give two shits about him. Then why would they steal for him? 

And that halfbloods, or even muggleborns, have weaker magic than purebloods, I don’t think that’s true either. There are many powerful wizards and witches in history who weren’t of pure blood. Did you know that Merlin was a halfblood? 

And that muggles hate wizards and witches, it seems to be true in some cases but not in all. 

Remus (remember? the quiet one I mentioned in a previous letter) says that it’s just like that some wizards don’t like muggles, there can be distrust and embitterment on both sides but it doesn't need to be that way. 

And why would you steal magic for your child if you hated magic? It’s paradoxical. Why haven’t I realised that before? 

Reg please don’t listen too much to mother and father and mr. Bulstrode. They’re confused. There is so much they’re wrong about. You’ll see when you get here.

Sirius 

2 december 1971

Happy birthday Reggi. I sent this in the morning so hopefully it will arrive in time if you’re on the estate in Wales. Which I suppose you are since it’s december.

Sirius

20 december 1971

Merry Christmas. As you probably know already I’m not expected home for christmas but don’t feel too bad for me. Me and my dorm-mates have gotten closer and I’m going to spend the holidays at James’ house. 

Don’t tell anyone!

Sirius

2 september 1971

Dear Sirius, I heard about your sorting, mother and father are furious but I want you to know that I’m not. 

I know Andromeda once told us that you can tell the hat where you want to go and it will take it into consideration, but in the end it’s the hat that decides and I’m not going to fault you for something you can’t control. 

I’ve always told you that you’re reckless and foolhardy and now I think it’s proven once and for all.

I miss you already. 

I had a nightmare last night and I went to your room, I had almost turned the doorknob when I realised that you wouldn’t be there. 

I’m sure mother and father will calm down soon enough. I can’t wait to hear about hogwarts.

With much love,  
R.A.B.

5 september 1971

Dear Sirius, why haven't you written? I know you must be busy, what with all your new classes and the friends I’m sure you’re making, but you promised to write to me the second at the latest and it’s the fifth. 

Sorry for the shortness of this letter, my hand hurts, you know how bad I am at astronomy.

R.A.B. 

10 september 1971

Siri, are you angry with me over something? 

I’ve tried to think back on the weeks before you left but I can’t think of something that I did that would make you not want to write to me. 

Father said that you chose to be in gryffindor to spite the family, was it because of me? I wouldn’t put it past you to to something like this in a moment of temporary insanity just out of petty. 

But it can still be fixed can’t it? Can’t you ask to be resorted? And if not you can still make valuable connections. There are people from influential families in gryffindor too right? And there’s nothing saying that you can’t associate with people from other houses. 

What I’m saying is don’t cause any more trouble, do what you’re supposed to do and I’m sure everything will work out.

Hopeful greetings,  
R.A.B.

20 october 1971

Seeing as you don’t answer you might want me to stop writing so if you don’t answer this one I will. But I hope you’ll answer, it’s been very lonely here without you. 

Almost all of my exams and assignments are now written, mr. Bulstrode says it’s because I need to practise my penmanship before I go to Hogwarts. 

While I do appreciate this, you know how stumbling my speech can get and mr. Bulstrode hates that, it leads to me speaking very rarely now days with you gone as well. 

Can one’s voice lose its function just like muscles do when you don’t use them? Sometimes I get the urge to say something loudly to myself just to check that I still can, but of course I don’t, I don’t want people to think that I’m insane. 

It is also very boring here without you, I’ve now reached the conundrum that there is nothing left in our library that I want to read but haven’t already. The only books left now are on the dark arts, you know how queasy those make me, and books too difficult for me to understand. 

I’ve taken to watching people who pass by my bedroom window and drawing them, it helps to pass the time a little. 

And I thought of something, we can still hangout in school next year even if we’re in different houses, right? 

Mother and father don’t seem so angry anymore, so maybe I’ll see you on christmas, I’m looking forward to it.

Yours,  
R.A.B.

25 december 1971

I know I said that I wouldn’t write you anymore letters until you replied, but I just want to wish you a merry christmas. I’m sorry you’re not here, I wish you were.

R.A.B.

Steam filled the station along with the exited shouts and chattering of loved ones reunited after months apart as the students of Hogwarts spilled out of the read train. 

That is, all except one, Sirius Black had stayed back in the compartment. 

He had told his friends that he had lost some of his gobstone pieces and that he was going to look for them before exiting the train. He had declined Remus offer to help look, saying that he didn’t want to make Remus’ parents wait and besides he would find them quickly once he had the compartment for himself. 

But he didn’t actually have anything to look for, his gobstoneset was safely tucked away in his trunk. So instead he just sat by the window, watching the commotion outside, half hidden behind a curtain so that he wouldn’t be too visible. 

The truth was that the arrival at platform 9 and ¾ at the end of term was a time for hugging your friends goodbye and introducing them to your family. Sirius didn’t want to explain to his friends why he couldn’t do that, so instead he just waited for his friends to leave before he could do the same. 

He watched as James ran up to his parents, hugging them and how they both gave him a kiss on the forehead. 

He watched Peter run up to his father, surprisingly tall considering Peter’s own height, then he saw the mother and it all made sense. 

He watched as Remus’ parents hugged their son. With tears in their eyes they looked Remus over very thoroughly and seemed awfully relieved, as if mildly surprised that their son was still alive and well. 

Well his mother is a muggle maybe she was afraid that a magical environment would corrupt and damage her son, Sirius thought. Then he caught himself, shaking his head in an attempt to banish the thought. Not all muggles distrust magic, not all muggles distrust magic, not all muggles distrust magic. 

He let the mantra play over and over in his head as he watched his friends drag their parents over to each other to have them introduced. 

As the adults all shock hands he realised that this was the first time he had ever seen a polite interaction between wizards and muggles. It looked so much more normal and companionable than he had expected it to and he felt relieved, both for mrs. Lupin’s sake and for her son’s. 

As his friends and their families apperated away or left through the brick wall that separating the platform from muggle London, Sirius got of the train. The platform was nearly empty by then and it didn’t take Sirius long to find the scowling face of his mother. 

“What took you so long?!” Walburga snapped as Sirius approached. But Sirius knew that she didn’t really want an answer, it was more of a way to express her disapproval of the matter, so he didn’t give her one. Instead he held out his arm which his mother grabbed and they disappareted.

Regulus and Orion were in the parlor to greet them when they arrived to Grimmauld Place. 

“Welcome home Sirius.” Orion said.

“Thank you father.” Sirius answered as he looked towards his brother and Regulus averted his eyes.

“I trust you’ve done well in your classes”

“Yes father.” 

Regulus was still not making eye contact, keeping his gaze at the floor. 

“But you’ve gotten into a lot of trouble during the second term, your head of house has reassured me that they were mostly “harmless jokes”, but those kinds of shenanigans are not befitting a Black. We will discuss it in my study after you’ve unpacked.” 

Regulus quickly looked up at that, first at his father and then he stared transfixed at his brother.

“Yes father.” Sirius nodded jerkily and then went upstairs followed by Creature levitating his trunk.

At dinner that night Sirius had very little appetite, which wasn't unusual when he ate with his parents. 

Sirius couldn’t help but compare this dinner to the ones he’d had at Hogwarts and for the first time he realised the reason behind his lack of appetite, it was bloody stressful to eat with his parents. It was difficult to focus on his hunger when every meal they ate as a family was a test in etiquette. 

Don’t have your elbows on the table, don’t eat too quickly, don’t eat too slowly, don’t slouch, don’t lean back, don’t speak unless spoken to. 

During this particular lesson in etiquette Walburga and Orion had mostly spoken to each other until near the end when Walburga had addressed Sirius. 

“Bellatrix tells me that you have been associating with a halfblood in school, you do understand that that can’t continue.”

“Why?” Sirius’ question made everyone around the table stare bewildered at him. 

His mother almost choked on her wine before she answered.

“Why of course, someone with dirty blood isn’t worth your company Sirius. And you’re at Hogwarts to make valuable connections, not to make friends with someone who will never have a place in polite society.” She said, then she looked around the table chuckling slightly as if she expected Sirius to reveal that he had been joking. 

When she realised that he wouldn’t her face darkened. 

“Halfbloods can to make valuable connections, Remus is smarter than anyone else in our year.” 

This time Walburga did choke on her wine.

“Go upstairs Sirius, I don’t have the energy to look at you right now.”

“But,...” Sirius began, looking to Regulus for support, he had explained it in his letters so Regulus should understand, but Reglus merely looked down at his plate.

“Now!” Walburga shrieked and Sirius reluctantly obeyed. 

Sirius tried explaining the things he’d realised in school to his parents a few more times over the next few days but it always ended in a similar fashion only the curses got worse. Soon Sirius realised that it was futile, his parents were too set in their ways to ever understand. 

Five days later Sirius found himself alone with his brother for the first time since his arrival home. 

His parents had made sure to give him extra lessons in pureblood history to “reinstate correct values” and on top of that Regulus seemed to be avoiding him. 

But one evening Sirius had caught Regulus’ wrist before he could enter his room. 

“What do you want?” Regulus had hissed as he tore his hand away and looked Sirius in the eye for the first time in days.

“To talk to you and to ask you why you haven’t backed me up with mother and father. I have explained it to you, what is it that you don’t understand?” Sirius whispered back, rather loudly. 

Regulus didn’t answer, he just looked away.

“Come on Reg. When will you learn to have your own opinion?” 

Regulus still didn't answer, turning back to his bedroom door. 

Sirius made to grab his wrist again.

“Regulus! Can’t we talk?” 

At that Regulus sharply turned around.

“Oh you want to talk now do you? What am I like your backup when you don’t have anyone better to talk to?” Regulus snapped.

“What i the name of Merlin do you mean?”

“Ten months, I haven’t heard from you in almost ten months. Not once. I sent you five letters during your first term and you didn’t answer any of them.”

“I sent you tons of letters.”

“Well that's funny because I didn’t get any.”

“And I didn’t get any..from..you.” Sirius said slowly, the realisation of what their parents must have done hitting him. 

Regulus must have come to the same conclusion because he stared at Sirius, his eyes wide and mouth slightly open. All Sirius could do was to stare back. 

The spell was broken as mr. Bulstrode came upstairs to check on Regulus’ assignment for the day and the boys quickly averted their eyes and went to their rooms. 

Later that night, when he had gone to bed, Sirius heard a soft knocking on his door. 

He let Regulus in, quietly closed the door behind them and then pulled his brother into a hug. They stood so for a while and then they sat on Sirius’ bed and he told Regulus all about Hogwarts. 

He told him about the castle, the ghosts, the classes but he avoided to mention anything about bloodpolitics, this moment was too perfect and he didn’t want to ruin it. He would try to talk to Regulus about it tomorrow. 

And so he did and the day after that and the day after that. But Regulus got up and left every time he started and it was dangerous to discuss the matter with their parents, mr. Bulstrode and Creature around so eventually Sirius gave up. Regulus would get to Hogwarts soon, Sirius was sure that he would understand then.

But Regulus didn’t. Instead of ending up in an environment where his ideas were questioned he ended up in slytherin where the overwhelming majority shared those ideas and slowly but surely the brothers drifted apart. Soon they had very little to do with each other. At least until four years later.

Sirius was sixteen and Regulus was fifteen when one fateful night changed everything.


	3. A Fateful Night

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So now the actual au of this au starts, hope you enjoy it. 
> 
> WARNING: This chapter does mention suicidal thoughts, only briefly, it isn’t graphic and nothing actually happens but just a heads up. Also there will be cursing because sixteen-year-old-Sirius curses, that’s just how it is. 
> 
> And I don’t know how to make break-lines/page dividers on this site so instead I’m going to use ###. If any kind soul would like to tell me how to make break-lines in the comments, that would be appreciated.

29 june 1976

In a room on the third floor of the Black country estate in Wales Sirius is trying to study but he can’t concentrate, it’s too quiet. 

He misses the hustle and bustle of the Gryffindor tower. He misses James’ incessant babbling, Peter’s humming, the sound of Remus biting the ends of his muggle pencils when he’s thinking, the arguments on which of the teachers are secretly dating, the bangs of exploding snap, he misses every single sound. 

He can remember a time when the silence and his brother were the only things that he missed about home when at Hogwarts, now both of them make him nauseous. 

The silence makes him nervous somehow and makes him jump at every squeak the old house makes.

He taps his quill against the polished desktop in an attempt to drown out the silence. It isn’t working. Eventually he gives up, leans back in his chair and stares through the window above the desk at the sunset outside. 

The house is surrounded by huge gardens but beyond that all he can see is woods.

They came here the same day that him and Regulus had come home from school, that was a week ago and they are going to stay here three more weeks. He can barely believe he’s thinking it but he’d actually rather be at Grimmauld Place.

If he would stick his head out of a window at Grimmauld Place and shout something, someone would hear. He would of course never do that but the fact that he can’t do it here unnerves him, although he can’t place his finger on why.

The pink of the sky makes him think of Remus’ lips that one time they had kissed that previous autumn, but he quickly banishes that thought from his mind. He can’t think of Remus like that. Maybe one time he could but he lost that right after what had happened with Snape and the willow two months later. He’s just grateful that he hasn’t lost Remus’ friendship as well. 

###

Regulus puts down the Daily Prophet with a sigh and looks outside at the darkening sky. The red of the sunset looks like blood. He feels sick. He looks away.

Today’s Prophet tells the tale of yet another attack on a mudblood, the second this month. He knows that mudbloods are a threat to wizarding society but the problem shouldn’t be solved like that, can’t be solved like that.

That their parents have stolen magic from a wizarding child is not the fault of the mudbloods themselves, they were babies when it happened.

One solution could be to take them from their parents immediately when they showed signs of magic, to protect them from muggle influences.

He looks at the Prophet lying on his desk and feels nauseous all over again. He turns the paper over so that he won’t have to look at the picture. He needs to read something else.

###

This is ridiculous. Sirius’ parents had asked him to come downstairs so that they could discuss something with him. And what do they want to discuss? A fucking engagement. To Alecto Carrow. That bitch is insane, six years older than him, (a girl), and did he mention insane. Also, he is sixteen, he can’t get engaged. Why hasn’t anyone asked him? Or even told him before now?

Over the years he has learned to keep his head down and nood along to most of the insane shit they spew but this is something else entirely. This is his life.

“NO! NO WAY!”

###

Regulus looks up from his transfiguration book and rubs his hands over his face and neck. Ugh, honestly. Can’t one week go by without a shouting match? Why must Sirius insist on provoking them? He needs to learn how to pick his fights.

Regulus tries to focus on his book again but is soon interrupted once more by a bone chilling scream.

He quickly stands up, the book falling to the floor. He needs to rush downstairs, to make sure that everyone is alright but he can’t. He can’t move, can’t even breath. All he can do is stand there.

The scream stops as quickly as it started. It lasts maybe three seconds but it continues to echo in Regulus’ head as he picks up his wand and hurries downstairs.

The door to the parlour is closed but he can hear voices from inside, his mother’s and his father’s. He needs to open the door. He wants to open the door. He can’t open the door.

He stares at the door for a while, slowly walks towards it. His chest is constricting, he can’t breathe properly. No, he definitely can’t do it. Merlin, he’s such a coward.

He turns around a quietly goes to the front door, he can’t be here right now.

“Where is young master going?”

Regulus jumps and turns towards the sound. It’s Creature.

“I’m just going for a walk.”

Creature makes to follow him outside.

“No, Creature. Stay here.”

“Young master shouldn't be out by himself.”

“I’ll be fine. I’ll be back shortly.”

And so Regulus goes outside and Creature reluctantly stays behind.

The sun has set by now, leaving the air a bit chilly. The grounds are only illuminated by the light from the house and the moon above. 

Regulus walks through the garden and when it ends he continues into the surrounding oak forest. 

After a few minutes he stops, tilts his head back, closes his eyes and lets the tears fall. The tears just continues and when his breath only comes in small gasps he has to sit down.

Eventually the tears stops falling so rapidly and he can breath properly again. It leaves him exhausted and so he lies down on the ground. 

Looking up at the stars he tries to find the Canis Major constellation, a habit left from times he was upset when he was younger. He appreciates that he can see the stars here, one can so rarely see them in London.

Regulus quickly stands up and wipes the tears from his face as he hears someone approaching. 

“Creature, I told you to leave me alone!”

There’s no answer, only complete silence for a moment. Then the sound of someone aroching is back. The approach sounds more rapid this time. 

###

His parents have left the room by the time Sirius can stand up again. The spell had only lasted for a few seconds but he had stayed on the floor for Merlin knows how long. He had felt pathetic, he still did, but he had not been able to do more than to lie there, waiting for the residual pain to lessen slightly. 

It’s hard to keep his balance, his legs and feet don’t seem to want to do what he wants them to do. Looking down at his hands they’re much the same, his fingers bends and twitches without him wanting them to. He holds his right hand in front of his face, attempts to hold it still but it’s impossible.

He slowly makes it up the two sets of stairs to his bedroom where he collapses on the bed, his breath coming out in shaking gasps. 

The first feeling that his mind registers besides the pain and fear is shook. He had known that his mother was capable of a lot, but an unforgivable? On her own son? He hadn't even considered it a possibility, until now.

The second feeling is determination, he can’t stay here any longer. He gets out of bed, lifts the mattress and retrieves a fotoalbum he has hidden under it. He’s intending to put it in his trunk but his fingers cramp and he drops it. It lands on the floor, open on a page with a picture of Remus. Sirius gives up and sits down on the bed with a frustrated sigh and looks down at the picture.

“At least now I know what it feels like when you transform Moony.” he whispers.

He looks at the moon outside his window.

“Sorry I can’t be with you tonight.”

And then he lays back on the bed, he will pack tomorrow. 

###

With a sharp pain in his side and on his forearms Regulus scrambles for his wand and manages to push the creature off of him with the knockback jinx but the creature quickly advances again. Regulus does the only thing he can think of.

“Creature!”

With a crack the elf shows up beside him. Creature holds his hands in front of him and with a blinding light whatever attacked Regulus is pushed further away before it turns around and scrambles further into the forest. Creature turns towards Regulus. Two sets of wide eyes meet each other.

“Creature will get you to master Orion or mistress Walburga.” Creature squeaks.

“NO! No Creature don’t do that.”

If the attacker was what Regulus thinks it was then no one can know.

“But young master needs healing.” Creature insists.

“No Creature, you can’t let ANYONE know about this. Can’t…. can’t you do something?” Regulus says desperately as he gestures to the scratches on his arms and his side where blood is quickly soaking his robes. He knows that elves have a lot stronger magic than most wizards give them credit for.

“Creature can try...” The elf mutters as he puts his small hands to Regulus’ side.

Creature can’t heal the wounds completely but he stops them from bleeding before he apparetes himself and Regulus to Regulus’ room, leaving a patch of blood behind them on the forest floor as Regulus fades out of consciousness.

###

The cramping has mostly stopped by morning and Sirius packs everything in the room in his trunk whilst he contemplates where the fuck to go. His first thought is James’, the few times he has visited they have told him that he is welcome at any time. But he quickly banishes that thought, he is fairly certain that harboring a runaway is not what they had in mind when they said that.

He has a few galleons in his trunk, maybe he can stay at the Leaky Cauldron for a while. And then…get a job? It can’t be that hard to find one, right? Can he earn enough during the breaks to pay for a place to live, food and school supplies? Maybe he can borrow any of the other marauders’ books when they aren’t using them.

###

Regulus wakes up with a jolt as hot pain shots through his body as he rolls over on his side. He gingerly sits up and looks down at the wound. In the light of day Regulus can say for certain that it is a bite. But is it from what he thinks it is? He needs to go to the library.

###

His parents will be of at a party that evening and Creature will be with them, then Sirius can leave unnoticed. Now he just has to wait.

###

The more he reads the more Regulus paniks. It must have been a werewolf that attacked him. The question is, is he turning? Maybe the bite didn’t go deep enough. Maybe it wasn’t a werewolf after all, it was dark he could have been mistaken. 

Regulus goes up to his room casts a silencing charm and puts his last hope to a silver sickle. A hot pain flares up in his finger the moment he touches the coin. 

He feels dizzy as a broken sob echos through the room and he sinks to the floor. Cold sweat breaks out all over his body and he can’t breathe properly. 

###

No he can’t go to the Leaky Cauldron, Sirius decides. His parents will find him in a wizarding hotell, maybe he can go to a muggle one, get a muggle job and hide out in the muggle world until school starts again.

###

Lying on the floor Regulus comes to a horrifying realisation, he has to die before he becomes insane, before he turns into a monster. How will he go about it in the least painful way? He could order Creature to do it, but no, he can’t put that on the poor elf. He has to do it himself.

###

When his parents finally leave Sirius levitates his trunk to the top of the stairs. He puts his foot on the first step before he stops and turns his head towards the door to the bedroom opposite his own.

He has barely talked to Regulus all year but they were best friends once and he still loves him. Regulus will hate him after he leaves. But he can’t stay and he knows that Regulus won’t leave. Maybe he should force Regulus to. What will happen to his brother when he’s gone? But it can’t be too bad, Regulus has always been good at avoiding trouble, he’s the golden child, he’ll be alright.

But Sirius needs to see his brother one last time. He needs Regulus to look at him one last time without a look of utter disdain. He puts his trunk down and knocks on the door. There’s no answer.

Naturally the little bugger is ignoring him. He starts to question why he even bothers. But still…

He opens the door.

The sight that meets him makes him freeze up. Regulus is sitting on the floor, leaning against the wall, hugging his knees to his chest, crying hysterically. Beside him lays his wand and a coin. Sirius hasn’t seen Regulus cry for years and he’s never seen him like this. 

He’s lost on what to do, he even contemplates calling Creature before he realises that the elf isn’t here.

“What the fuck.” is the only response he can give.

Regulus looks up at that and shakily stands up, all the while clearly hiding his right hand from Sirius’ view by holding it behind his back. He winches slightly as he uncurles from his seated position as if his stomach or back hurts.

“Leave me alone.” Regulus says in a voice that is probably supposed to sound angry but he chokes on his words and he just sounds broken. Sirius doesn’t leave.

“Get out!” Regulus shouts, his voice raspy like an old man’s.

As Sirius advances Regulus steps back, hugging his abdomen with his left arm. With quidditch honed speed Sirius steps forward and grabs Regulus’ right wrist from behind his brother’s back and locks at the hand. 

Sirius had expected Regulus to be holding something, but the hand is empty. It looks normal except for a cluster of unusual looking blisters on the index finger. A type of blisters that Sirius recognises. He’s seen them before, on Remus. 

He looks at the coin on the floor, it’s a silver sickle. It can’t possibly be, can it? 

With one hand still around Regulus’ wrist Sirius reaches for the hem of Regulus’ shirt and lifts it up. Regulus tries to protest but Sirius has always been quite a lot bigger than him and in his current weakened state it’s futile. 

Sirius’ shocked eyes meet Regulus’ terrified ones. As the struggling against Sirius’ hold intensifies he relents and Regulus once again sinks down on the floor, rocking slightly back and forth. Sirius feels tears well up in his eyes as Regulus starts the cry even more.

“I don’t want to die.” Regulus gets out between sobs.

“I..I tried, but I couldn’t….I couldn’t do it.” Regulus says as he stares somewhere behind Sirius.

Sirius turns around to see what Regulus is looking at and his eyes land on the wand, he shudders. 

“You’re not going to die Regulus.”

“I, I have to, before I turn insane.”

“You won’t turn insane.” 

Sirius can’t take his eyes off Regulus’ wand.

“Yes I will! I know that you know what this means” Regulus says as he gestures to his side. ”I can see it in the way you look at me. And that’s what lycanthropy does. It turns you insane.”

“No..no it doesn’t. Lycanthropy doesn’t affect your sanity in the slightest.” Sirius says as he finally looks back at Regulus.

“How could you possibly know?!”

“I know.”

“How!”

“I just..I just know!”

Regulus just shakes his head and Sirius is struggling to find the right words. There was a time when he to were of similar beliefs as Regulus on the matter, but he can’t honestly tell Regulus why he isn’t anymore. It turns out he doesn’t have to, as Regulus suddenly becomes quiet and stares up at Sirius in bewilderment.

“Lupin?” Regulus says quietly and Sirius can tell that it isn’t really a question. 

Sirius doesn't answer, he just looks away. After a moment of deafening silence something occurs to him.

“You have to leave.” He says decisively as he opens Regulus’ trunk and starts throwing things into it.

“Sirius! What?”

“Mother and father will find out and when they do they will kill you.”

###

Regulus opens his mouth to argue but realises that he can’t, Sirius is right. 

For the first time Regulus notice that Sirius is wearing his flying-robes, but he doesn’t have it in him to ask why as he puts on his own. Then he proceeds to help Sirius with packing everything he has in the room back in his trunk and instead asks where he should go.

“We’ll figure it out.” Sirius answers and at the word we Regulus feels the tightness in his chest lessen a little.

When everything is packed, except his wand and broomstick which he is holding, he follows Sirius out into the hallway where he notices that Sirius’ trunk and broomstick are already waiting. At that he feels a new type of nausea that has nothing to do with the predicament he is currently in.

Sirius shrinks their trunks and puts them in his pocket before the two of them quickly descend the stairs and walk outside where the sun has already set.

###

The cold night air rushing past him, as they fly over the woods and leave the manor behind them, makes Sirius feel a little bit better. But only a little bit because he’s got no clue what to do now.

He had been planning to sleep in a park or something as Padfoot until he could earn enough money for a muggle hotel. But with Regulus, especially in the condition he’s in, that’s impossible.

They’ll have to go to James’, only temporarily of course until they can figure something else out. He can only hope that the Potters will be as welcoming to a bloodelitist slytherin as they have been to him.

###

They fly for what Regulus judges to be about an hour before they land in the outskirts of a small, quiet village, where Sirius takes out his wand to attract the knight bus. 

When Sirius tells the conductor that they’re going to the Potter manor Regulus contemplates not getting on the bus. But he’s got nowhere else to go so he just accepts his fate, as unfortunate as it is.

Regulus has no clock but it must be sometime in the middle of the night as they arrive outside the wards of the Potter manor.

Sirius confidently steps through the wards but Regulus hesitates. Will the wards act against him? He has never been here before and, he hates to admit it, he is a dark creature now. But Sirius just grabs his hand and drags him through and to Regulus’ relief nothing happens.

Then he follows Sirius up to the big, sand coloured brick house in front of which Sirius unshrinks his trunk and takes out a hand held mirror. Regulus watches as Sirius starts whispering into it.

“James”

“Hey, James.” Sirius says a little louder but still doesn’t receive an answer.

Sirius places the mirror on the ground and picks up a handful of gravel from the path leading up to the house and starts hurling them at a window on the second floor.

“Sirius what are you doing? You’re going to break the window.” Regulus whispers urgently. 

When Sirius doesn’t get what he wants from the window he picks up the mirror again.

“Prongs!”

“Eh..Padfoot?” A tired voice from the mirror says.

“Finally!” Sirius says to the mirror.

“Are you outdoors?” 

“I’m outside.”

“Yes that’s what I said. Why? It’s half past one.”

“No Prongs, I’m outside.” Sirius says slowly with an emphasis on “outside”.

“Yes exactly...Are you drunk?”

“I’m outside your house!”

With that a blue light is emitted from the window Sirius had been throwing gravel at and soon the window opens.


	4. How The Potters Aren’t As Surprised As The Average People Would Be.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This certainly took a while, sorry if anyone was waiting for the next chapter but I’m drowning in schoolwork right now.
> 
> So now I attempt to write James, which is horrifying because I adore him and want to do him justice, let's hope it works out. 
> 
> Also I’m too lazy to proofread this before I publish it so I apologise for possible mistakes.

James Potter isn’t as surprised as the average person would be at seeing one of his best friends outside his house at half past one at night. In fact he’s been hoping for some version of this scenario for years.  
It isn’t a secret that Sirius doesn’t like his family and that they don’t like him much in return, everyone knows that. But there are other things about Sirius’ homelife that aren’t as widely know but that are hard to miss when you spend the majority of the year sleeping in the same dorm room as him.

James notice it in the lengths Sirius would go not to get into trouble when they first came to Hogwarts and how relieved he would be when the consequences for getting into trouble were “only detentions”.

James notice it in how nervous, hesitant and overly compliant Sirius had been when he had visited Potter manor over christmas that first year and how it had taken two more visits before Sirius stopped freezing up every time one of James’ parents would reach for a wand.

James notice it in tears Sirius cries when he thinks everyone else is asleep, the tight smiles at the end of term, the letters Sirius reads and then promptly burns. 

Sirius always tells him not to worry, it’s only some shouting and harmless curses, nothing Sirius can’t handel. But James does worry and so do his parents. So every time they see Sirius they make sure to tell him that he’s always welcome, in the hope that when things get to much he’ll come to them.

So no, James isn’t very surprised at seeing Sirius. What does surprise him though is that Sirius isn’t alone.

Even in the dark of night James instantly recognizes Regulus. 

At first glance he is similar to his brother, they have the same wavy black hair and the same angular features. But Regulus is shorter and just generally smaller than Sirius, less broad. The hair is shorter as well and whilst the angular features make Sirius conventionally handsome they make Regulus look slightly hollowed out and skeletal like.

“Wait there.” James says out the window before he hurries downstairs to the front door and flings it open.

First he feels cold air rush against him as he stands in the doorway in nothing but his Chudley Cannons pyjamas, but quickly he feels warmer again as Sirius envelopes him in a tight embrace and he hugs back just as tightly. 

They have only been away from each other for just over a week, but after spending so much time together with the rest of the marauders at school any time apart seems impossibly long to James. And on top of that James always worries for his friends. He worries for Peter’s mental wellbeing, Remus’ physical wellbeing and when it comes to Sirius he worries about both.

He feels Sirius shaking against him and he pushes away slightly to look for injuries. He doesn’t see any, not that that is particularly reassuring. He knows that there are a lot of injuries that can easily be hidden with magic or under clothing, they all do it after the full moons. 

James looks past Sirius’ shoulder at the boy standing a few meters away, his arms crossed over his chest, eyes looking anywhere but at the other two.

“Regulus.” James says, and then imploringly locks eyes with Sirius. Sirius shakes his head slightly in a clear signal of “not right now”.

“Potter.” Regulus replies curtly as he inclines his head and briefly looks at James before quickly averting his eyes again.

“Sorry for barging in like this but cloud we stay for a few days?” Sirius asks.

“Of course, come in.” James says as he levitates Sirius’ trunk inside.

Regulus seems to hesitate for a moment, looking at the door and then looking behind him.

“If you wanna sleep out here that is completely up to you.” Sirius says from the doorway. 

Regulus sends his brother a glare but walks into the house, stopping right inside the door, closing it quietly behind him. 

There is a moment of silence as no one knows what to say.

James is shocked at seeing Regulus Black at his house.

The first time James saw Regulus was at the sorting of James’ second year. Sirius had seemed distracted, lost in his thoughts since they had gotten on the train but when Regulus’ name was called out he had snapped to attention, staring towards the front of the Great Hall intently as if he could make the hat place his brother in Gryffindor by the sheer power of his will. When the hat had shouted out “Slytherin” Sirius had angrily punched the table blinking rapidly as if to stop himself from crying.

After the feast Sirius had hurried up to his brother, before the slytherin prefect brought the first years down to the dungeon, and hugged him and they had whispered something to each other.

Sirius had been more quiet than usual all evening but when James had asked if he was alright he had insisted that he was. 

James had woken up in the middle of the night to the sound of sniffling form behind the curtains of Sirius’ bed. As James had sat up he spotted Remus across the room. They had looked eyes for a moment both wondering the same thing, if they should talk to him. But eventually they came to a quiet agreement not to, they both knew that Sirius hated others seeing him cry and he never wanted to discuss his family with the others anyway.

Some time later Lily had talked about how important it is to talk to someone when you’re feeling down and James had started to regret all the times that he had backed of, not even trying, when Sirius had clearly needed someone.

Over the years James, Sirius, Peter and Remus started sharing more and more of their inner worlds with each other, now they talk about everything, even the difficult stuff. After all, there are some things you can’t share without ending up very close and doing something extremely illegal to help your werewolf friend is one of them.

But as the marauders had grown closer Sirius and Regulus had grown further apart.

At first the brothers had smiled at each other whenever they saw each other in the corridors or on the grounds and when no other slytherins were around they briefly talked. But quickly these interactions grew shorter and further in between and more often than not they ended up in arguments. After those arguments Sirius could be tense for hours, even days. After Regulus’ second year the interactions completely stopped.

The last time James saw them talk Sirius had said: “You used to be so..so..You used to cry when you saw an injured bird or accidentally killed a spider and now, now you read books on the dark arts and hang out with the likes of Amycus Carrow, standing back while he curses people just for fun. What happened to you? You have become just like the rest of them.”

“I grew up Sirius. And the world isn’t made for people like that, I adapted.” Regulus had calmly replied before he had turned on his heel and walked away.

Sirius had been inconsolable that night, crying for the little brother he was sure he had now lost forever.

And so, as James sees Regulus in his hall his first instinct is to glare. But when James looks at Regulus another memory enters his mind. Regulus is standing so close the the door, just like Sirius had done the first time he came over because, as James had later realised, he had had an unconscious need to have a quick escape route.

On closer inspection James notices that Regulus has a hand in one of his pockets where James can see the outline of a wand. Regulus is clearly very nervous being here, maybe even afraid.

At this realisation James pockets his own wand. He has always seen a wand first and foremost as a tool but he knows that Sirius sees it first and foremost as a weapon at least in the hands of people he doesn’t really know, maybe Regulus does to.

James is dying to ask why Regulus is here, but first thing first.

“Are either of you injured?”

Sirius shakes his head and looks at Regulus.

“I‘m fine.” Regulus replies quietly looking at the floor, his hands still in his pockets.

Sirius sighs and turns to James.

“We need to talk.” Sirius says as he drags James through one of the doors in the hall leading to the sitting room and closes the door behind them, leaving Regulus in the hall.

“We ran away.” Sirius says quietly as the door closes.

“You don’t say. I mean you did kinda arrive unannounced in the middle of the night, it’s either that or you’ve murdered someone and want help hiding the body.” James says and then he turns serious looking Sirius strait in the eyes. “I’m glad you came here.”

“We won’t be here for long though, I promise, just a few nights until we can figure something out.”

“And what are you going to do exactly? Sleep on a park bench? Because I’m assuming your parents will cut you off from your accounts and your brother doesn’t really seem like the living it rough kinda person and honestly neither do you.”

“I don’t know.” Sirius says sounding defeated as his left arm spasms.

“You know, you could just stay here.”

“What? Until I graduate?” Sirius says with a small laugh.

“Longer if you want.”

“I can’t just move in.”

“Of course you can, we already live together a Hogwarts.”

“Yeah but your parents...”

“They will love to have you here, they always say that your welcome whenever.”

“This wouldn’t just be a visit.”

“Trust me, they won’t mind.”

“And Regulus?”

“He’s your brother, if you want him here he’s welcome.”

It is quiet for a moment as Sirius contemplates this and James asks the question that's been burning in his head since he opened his bedroom window.

“About Regulus, I always figured you would leave someday but why is Regulus with you? I thought you said that he was just like them and you guys don’t really seem to be on the best of terms.”

“He has been bitten by a werewolf. I didn’t know what to do, he can’t stay with our parents, if they finds out...” Sirius trails of, shutting his eyes for a moment.

“When did that happen?” James asks, stunned.

“He hasn’t transformed yet so it must have been sometime last night.”

“Shit.”

“You’re always so good with words. Speaking of the moon, have you heard from Remus?”

“I got his letter a few hours ago, he’s okay. It was worse than usual, he reckons Moony has gotten used to the company and was upset that we weren’t there.”

“We should be there.”

“I know but Remus doesn't want his parents finding out.” James sighs, they've discussed this many times before.

“And now I’ve got two of them to worry about.” Sirius says as he frustratedly runs his finger through his hair. As he does his left arm spasms again and he ends up yanking his hair.

“Fuck!”

“What is wrong with your arm?”

Sirius starts massaging his arm but doesn’t answer, but he doesn’t have to. James knows of only one spell that causes muscle spasms after it’s no longer in effect and James feels sick thinking about it.

“Sirius?” He chokes out.

When Sirius looks at James tears are rapidly falling from his eyes and James’ fears are confirmed. They hug as James also starts crying and as they stand there clinging desperately to each other James realises that whilst he certainly is surprised he isn’t as surprised as he feels like he should be when realising that oberoende of his friend has been put under an unforgivable. 

###

Euphemia Potter quickly sits up in bed as she hears sounds coming from downstairs.

“Monty.” She whispers as she shakes her husband awake.

“Huh?” Comes a startled reply.

“Shhh. I think there is someone downstairs.”

At that Fleamont also sits up. They both take their wands and head out into the halway, quietly checking James’ room on the way to the stairs. Seeing it empty they look at each other, wondering if that is a good sign or a bad one.

They make their way down the stairs as quietly as possible with their wands at the ready expecting to see one of two things. One, James getting a late night snack. Two, an intruder in the middle of kidnapping their son. But they see neither, instead they see the back of a familiar looking teenager.

“Sirius?” Euphemia questions, stepping closer.

At this said teenager spins around quickly, eyes wide, mouth slightly open and he backs away with his hands held up at the level of his ears, away from his body. 

“James let me, James let me in.” The boy says quickly but clearly, not looking either of them in the eyes and then he violently jerks as he hits the wall behind him.

At closer inspection Euphemia realises that this isn’t Sirius, although he is very reminiscent of the boy she’s come to care for.

“Regulus Black?” She asks.

“Yes ma’am, I’m sorry, please, James let me in.” The boy, (Regulus?), says, still standing against the wall with his hands up starting to shake slightly.

“Where is James?” Fleamont asks, neither of them has lowered their wands jet, you can never be too safe in times like these especially when you have a child to think about.

“He, he’s through there, sir.” The boy says as he gestures to the door to the sitting room.

Fleamont goes and opens the door.

“Oh dear Merlin! What happened?” He exclaims as he looks into the sitting room. Then he turns back to his wife. “It’s alright, he’s telling the truth.”

At this Euphemia lowers her wand to her side but Regulus isn’t moving, his eyes intently at the wand, and she is uncomfortably reminded of a younger Sirius. She doesn’t have pockets on her nightgown so she puts the wand on a side table and only then does Regulus lower his hands but he doesn’t move from his spot by the wall. He lowers his head breathing heavily. 

“Are you alright?” She asks him.

“Yes ma’am.” He answers quietly, not looking at her.

Euphemia is lost on what to do, then she remembers her husband's previous exclamation and she turns to the sitting room. What did Fleamont see in there?

As she enters the room she sees Fleamont sitting in one of the armshaires and Sirius and James sitting in one of the sofas, they both have clearly been crying and her heart aches.

The boys have clearly run away and Euphemia finds herself both relieved that they are out of that toxic environment and worried about what made them leave.

“What happened?” She asks.

“They are living here now.” James says before Sirius can say anything.

Euphemia hears a choked sound from the hall and turns around to see Regulus staring open mouthed at her before he quickly lowers his head again.

Sirius studies his hands.“I understand if that isn’t, if that’s not going to work.” 

“Of course you can stay honey, you both can.” Euphemia says.

“We’re happy to have you. But would you like to tell us why you left? Is either of you injured?” Fleamont asks.

“Regulus was bitten by a werewolf last night, if our parents found out they would kill him.”

At this they all hear a door being forcefully opened. When Euphemia turns around Regulus is no longer in the hall and the front door is wide open.

“Shit!” Sirius says as he quickly stands up and runs out the door. “Regulus wait!”

###

Sirius rushes out into the chilly night air and tackles Regulus to the ground but before Sirius can react he is flung off by the Knockback Jinx. From the ground Sirius fires off first expelliarmus and then the tripping jinx before he gets up, catches Regulus’ wand and runs towards him, pinning him to the ground.

“Let me go! How could you? How could you tell? You made me leave home so this wouldn’t happen. What are they going to do to me? Please let me go.” Regulus pleads, tears streaming down his face, as he desperately struggles against Sirius’ hold.

“There not going to do anything.” Sirius grunts out as he is almost flong of again. “You were right about Remus and they know and they are okay with it. I’m sorry, I should have told you that before. I promise they’re not going to hurt you or turn you in or anything.”

But Regulus continues to struggle.

“Regulus please trust me. I wouldn’t have taken you here if I didn’t know for certain that it’s safe.” 

Eventually Regulus sags, if it’s because he believes it or because he’s too tired to fight anymore Sirius doesn’t know.

Sirius helps Regulus sit up and they just sit there breathing for a while. Sirius looks back at the house where he sees the three Potters on the porch. Then he turns back to Regulus whom is drying his tears with the sleeve of the cloak he is still wearing, Sirius had taken his of in the sitting room now only wearing a black sweater and grey pants.

When the redness of Regulus’ eyes disappear quicker than it should Sirius can’t help but smile a little. Some things never change and that comforts him a bit, maybe the brother he knew is still in there somewhere, albeit buried quiet deep.

“Soooo, we’re living here now.” Sirius says handing back Regulus’ wand as they stand up.

“Only until I find something else.” Regulus replies.

“Of course.” Sirius says as he eyes the scrawny fifteen-year-old beside him whom hasn’t taken an independent decision since he was ten and has never even gone to Diagon Alley on his own.

“What in the world possessed me to do this?” Regulus mutters under his breath as they approach the house.

“Well possessed isn’t quite the right word but...”

Regulus glares at him.

“Too soon?” Sirius says quietly as he smirks.

“I will kill you.”

“Alright, I’m sorry. Remus calls it a coping-mechanism.” Sirius says as he holds up his hands in a playful manner.

As they get closer to the house the irritation disappears from Regulus’ face replaced by that straind look he gets when he’s nervous but doesn’t want it to show.

“It’s okay” Sirius whispers caught in a feeling of déjà vu for a time he’d thought he’d left behind.

Regulus stops just in front of the porch and with his gaze fixed somewhere between Euphemia’s and Fleamont’s heads. When he speaks he sounds clear and collected, appearing calm, Sirius is sure, to anyone but Sirius himself. Because, even if Sirius hasn’t bothered to read his brothers body language for some time now, he hasn’t forgotten how to.

It’s in the way Regulus’ mouth is a little more tight, how he avoids eye contact even more than usual and how every movement he makes seems slower and more deliberate in a way. 

“Sir, madam, I sincerely apologise for my displays of imprudence and disrespect and I am truly grateful for your hospitality towards me and my brother.” Regulus says, pauses for a second, and then, seeming to realise something, he goes up to Fleamont with his right hand outstretched. 

“I’m Regulus Arcturus Black the second son of Orion and Walburga Black, it’s a pleasure to make you acquaintance.” He says as he bows his head a little.

“It’s nice to meet you as well Regulus, my name is Fleamont but most call me Monty and this is Euphemia or Mia and you’ve met James.” Fleamont says as he shakes the offered hand but then, instead of letting go, he turns the hand over and looks at it.

“Have you burnt yourself?” He asks causing James and Euphemia to also look at Regulus’ hand.

Regulus slowly pulls his hand back and avoids looking at anybody. He opens and closes his mouth again as if struggling with what to say. 

“Yes, he has.” Sirius answers for him.

“I should have a salve for that somewhere, go on into the kitchen while I go look for it.” Fleamont says.

“I will go and get two of the guest rooms ready then.” Euphemia says and Sirius can’t help but admire the Potters for how well they are handling the situation of having two runaways, one of which is a werewolf, show up on their doorstep in the middle of the night.

As the adults go upstairs the three boys enter the Potters’ spacious kitchen. One of the walls has a row of big windows in front of which there is a sturdy oak table with six matching chairs. In an L-shape along two of the other walls there are white-painted cabinets with brass knobs and a gas stove matching the knobs and in the middle of the cabinets opposite the windows there is a muggle refrigerator. 

Sirius loves testing all the muggle contraptions the Potters have in their house. They even have electricity! Which Sirius has studied in muggle studies but never quite managed to understand.

Now Regulus stops in his steps, staring at the refrigerator, much like Sirius had the first time he saw it.

“It’s a muggle invention, it keeps food cold.” Sirius says as he pushes his brother into a chair before taking a seat himself.

“Why am I not surprised.” Regulus mutters.

“You know, trains is a muggle invention and so is plumbing” Sirius says.

Before Regulus can answer Fleamont enters the kitchen with bandages and a jar of something which he puts on the table next to Regulus.

“Put that on your hand and put on a bandage and it should be gone by morning.” Fleamont says and then looks at the clock on the wall. “Well, later morning.”

“Thank you sir.” Regulus says as he does what he’s been told.

“There is no need to call me sir, it makes me feel old. You can call me Fleamont or Monty or Mr. Potter. I was going to say that you can call me whatever you want but a told Sirius that once and he spent that entire week calling me Babbitty Rabbitty of all things.” Fleamont says with a smile.

At this Regulus narrows his eyes at Sirius with a look that seems to say “What the hell is wrong with you?”. Sirius just shrugs at him and then smirks at Fleamont.

“Well I’m going back to bed and I suggest you boys to the same. Mia has set up the bedroom next to James’ and has placed you trunk in there Sirius and she has set up the one next to mine and Mia’s for you Regulus. Just knock on our door if any of you need anything.” Fleamont says before he walks up the stairs yawning.

“Well then...” James says looking between the two brothers before he heads upstairs, the two in them in tow.

At the second floor Sirius opens the second door to the right and gestures for Regulus to enter.

“This is yours then.” He says before he takes out Regulus’ trunk from his pocket and unshrinks it.

Regulus walks inside the room and looks around, the walls are a light blue with a border tapestry of blue flowers at the top, the floors ara a dark wood, there is a four poster bed made out of oak in a corner on the right side of the door and on the wall opposite the door there are two large windows under which there is a dresser and a desk matching the bed. 

In the middle of the ceiling there is a dome lamp in the pattern of a compass. Sirius flips the light switch by the door turning on the lamp making Regulus jump and turn around to look at him.

As Regulus watches Sirius smirks and flips the light switch again distinguishing the lamp. 

“Goodnight then.” Sirius says stepping out of the room.

Regulus nods and closes the door all the while looking curiously at the light switch.

Sirius turns to James.

“How do you think that’s going to work out?” James asks quietly gesturing to the closed door.

“No bloody clue.” Sirius sighs.

They stand looking at each other for a moment.

“I’m glad you’re here Padfoot.” James eventually says.

“So am I.”


	5. One Step Forward

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So again this took a while, sorry I’m still drowning. But I only have two more tests now before christmas break so maybe the next chapter will be posted a bit quicker. Anyway I wish everyone else going through finals good luck and good luck to everyone who deals with crazy family members over the holidays, luckily I’ve been spared on that account. 
> 
> And thank you to everyone who comments and leaves kudos, having never written fiction before it gives me the confidence to keep this up.

Regulus is sure the others have gone to sleep by now but he knows he won’t be able to, so he doesn't try. Instead he sits on the bed looking out the windows. He sees the moon and shudders, to think how quickly things can change. Yesterday he’d had power, wealth, family, a future, now he’s lost everything, now he lives at the mercy of blood traitors. 

This is why werewolves should be put down directly after they’ve been infected then this wouldn’t have happened, he thinks and then he catches himself. Merlin, he’s such a hypocrite. Maybe he should turn himself over to the ministry. 

Maybe that would be better anyway. What life can he have now? Can he even finish school? Remus Lupin goes to school. How is that possible? Maybe his parents are friends with the headmaster, it wouldn’t be too surprising, Dumbledore is a mudblood sympathiser, everyone knows that. 

Why else would someone let a werewolf into a building full of children, or into a building with any human for that matter? The Potters have, strangely enough, and Regulus can’t for the life of his figure out why. Why would anyone have so much disregard for their own safety? It seems like the foolhardiness of gryffindors are working in his favour for ones.

And speaking of disregard for one’s safety, he looks up at the odd glass dome in the ceiling. With all these muggle contraptions it’s a wonder the house hasn’t burnt down yet.

He knows that he can’t stay here with these people, but he doesn’t know where else to go. His friends from Hogwarts are quickly ruled out, he isn’t of any value to them now. And though he hates to admit it, Sirius is right, he can’t go back home. 

Would mother and father, or anyone else in the family besides Sirius, even look at him now? Would they scrunch up their faces in disgust? Would they curse him? Would they take him to the ministry? Would they kill him themselves? 

As silent tears run down his face he wraps his arms around his middle and feels something wet at his side. As he holds up his right hand in the faint light from the window he sees that it’s covered in blood.

Creature had done the best that he could but the bite-wound has reopened. Regulus wonders when that happened. Probably when Sirius tackled him.

Once again he curses his own heedlessness in that situation as well as Sirius’ inability to come up with a less heavy-handed way to stop him.

Now, how to go about fixing this? He could have asked the Potters before they went to bed. He knows Sirius wanted him to, on the way here Sirius had told him to ask mrs. Potter to look it over seeing as she’s a healer. But Regulus isn’t stupid, finding someone who is willing to help a runaway werewolf is improbable enough, finding someone willing to do it when they actually realise what it entails is impossible. So he needs to be careful not to remind them of it.

Besides, he knows they’re only letting him stay here because they want Sirius to, they don’t realise that, given the ultimatum, Sirius would chose them in a heartbeat. They don’t understand the disregard Sirius has for family, Merlin knows whom besides Sirius does.

Regulus knows that an ultimatum like that will come eventually, but he isn’t ready for it yet, so he needs to be careful with what he asks from them. 

This is something he’ll have to do on his own.

Regulus takes one of his shirts from his trunk and presses it against his side as he carefully opens the door and sneaks out into the hallway. Regulus has always liked being up late, there is something about the stillness of a house with the rest of the occupants asleep that’s comforting. But now the stillness feels eerie and he is far too aware of every sound, snoring, the creaking of beds, his own breathing. 

He gets to the stairs and stops, he should have paid attention to which steps creak on his way up. Oh well, there have been a lot of things in the last 48 hours that he should have done.

He steps onto the first one and his heart starts beating faster, it sounded like a cat dying. He stops for a moment and listens but there are no sounds from the other bedrooms that would suggest that someone woke up. Fortunately the rest of the stairs aren’t as bad.

Down in the kitchen he starts pulling out drawers at random, they should have healing supplies somewhere.

“Can I help with something?” Comes a squeaky voice from behind him.

“Merlin!” Regulus jumps and quickly turns around with his wand ready. It’s just a house elf.

“Sorry didn’t mean to frighten you. I’m Holly.” The elf says quietly.

“It’s fine, I’m Regulus Black.” Regulus whispers back.

“Holly knows, mistress told her.”

“Oh.” Regulus says as he rubs the back of his neck, a nervous tick he really needs to put an end to.

“Can Holly help mister Black with something?”

“No..it’s...actually, could you tell me where to find healing supplies?”

“What kind of healing supplies are needed?”

Regulus pauses for a second, realising that he doesn't actually know that much about healing. Eventually he decides to just lift up his shirt and peel away the bandages that Creature applied in the hopes that Holly knows what he needs.

“That should be treated at Saint Mungo’s.” She says instead.

“Yes because they would just be delighted to help me there!” Regulus hisses but instantly regrets it as Holly bows her head and starts wringing her hands.

”I’m sorry I shouldn’t have snapped at you, but I can’t go there.” Regulus says and then sighs, rubbing his face.

“Holly understands. Holly will go fetch mistress Euphemia.”

“No wait!” Regulus says, but Holly is already gone.

As if this night hasn’t been bad enough already, fate must really have it out for him.

###

As Euphemia enters the kitchen, levitating two large books and her medicine bag behind her, Regulus briefly meets her eyes before seeming to look somewhere to the side of her head.

“I’m sorry ma..mrs. Potter I never told her to wake you..I was just trying to...” He trails of, gesturing to his bloody side.

“I know, Holly told me. Sit down.” Euphemia says gesturing to one of the chairs around the table, if Regulus is anything like his brother it’s best to be straightforward. 

Regulus sits down at the edge of the seat, a little hunched over and starts bouncing his knee. And then, as if realising what he’s doing, he quickly stops the bouncing, shaking his head and sits up straighter, lifting his head up and again looks to the region of Euphemia's ear.

She has half a mind to ask him what’s so interesting about her ear. If this was James or even Sirius she would have, but Regulus is a stranger to her and she’s a stranger to him, better keep this professional. 

“Let’s see the damage then.” She says instead, pulling out a chair to sit in front of him.

“Mrs. Potter, it’s, it’s the bite, maybe you shouldn’t.” He says quietly.

“Nonsens, trust me I’ve seen worse.”

“No I mean the infection, maybe it spreads if you..try to treat it.”

“It won’t, it isn’t an infection as much as it’s like a curse, it won’t spread like an infection might, that much I know. I don’t know much more unfortunately, it’s not something that is normally covered when you train to be a healer. That’s what these are for.” She says as she gestures to the books she’d placed on the table together with the medicine bag.

Regulus eyes linger on the books for a while before he sighs and pulls up his shirt, seeming to resign himself to his fate.

She casts a few diagnostic spells. It isn’t as bad as she’d expected and she feels the presence of a strong healing spell, she wonders who cast it, it’s very impressive for someone of Sirius’ or Regulus’ age.

“Quite a good job has been done already. Did you do it on your own?”

“Creat.., I mean our house elf helped me.” Regulus says as he glances at Holly whom is now sat cross legged near him on the table.

“Well it’s very impressive. Now I’m going to cast a stabilising charm and then we’ll see what more can be done.”

Euphemia gets to work with different spells and salves, consulting the books from time to time, all the while Regulus is very tense, barely breathing when she touches his side. 

After a few minutes Holly starts asking Regulus questions.

“Sir, what is your favorite breakfast?” She asks, resting her chin in her hands and cocking her head to the side, looking at him.

Regulus stares back at her bewildered and than gives Euphemia what she can only assume is a questioning look.

“Should I answer her?” He asks uncertainty.

“It would be impolite not to.” Euphemia answers. 

“Um, blueberry pancakes maybe?”

Meanwhile Euphemia is trying to keep a found smile off her face. She recognises what Holly is doing, she used to do it whenever James was hurt when he was younger, heck whenever James is hurt now, she is trying to distract him.

And remarkably it seems to be working a little, although the conversation with the excited elf most certainly is awkward from Regulus’ side his muscles do become less tense after a while. 

“All done. It shouldn’t start bleeding again if you’re careful, no running around too much. It will take longer to heal seeing as it’s essentially a curse wound and there will be some scarring unfortunately.” Euphemia says after a while.

“Thank you.” Regulus nods, standing up.

Euphemia considers him for a moment.

“You could have just asked someone for help, there’s no need to sneak around trying to fix everything on your own.” She says as she starts to gather up the supplies.

“I’m sorry I didn’t mean to sneak around, I just, I didn’t consider..” 

As Euphemia turns around to start levitating the books back to the library Regulus abruptly stops speaking, he goes still as a statue and stares intently at the outstretched wand. Euphemia has a good guess as to why and she feels nauseous, a feeling she’s used to after working as a healer in a very divided society where everyone have access to a powerful weapon from the age of eleven, it never gets easier though. 

“No, Regulus, I was only going to levitate the books back to the library.” She says.

“Yeah, I know.” Regulus shakily answers as he rubs his neck.

“My age is getting to me it seems, I can’t carry as much as I used to.”

Regulus crosses his arms saying nothing.

There is another uncomfortable silence. 

Eventually Euphemia decides that being honest and open with her thoughts and feelings is the best path to take, after all it’s how she got through to Sirius.

“I’m sorry you had to live through that.” She says quietly.

“What do you mean?” He asks narrowing his eyes and actually making eye contact for what is probably the first time all night.

“Sirius has told us a few things about your parents...”

“Well Sirius has a habit of blowing things out of proportion.” Regulus snaps. “You know nothing about my life or my family.”

“Regulus, honey, what they did wasn’t right.”

“You shouldn’t talk about things that you don’t understand. Concern yourself with raising your own child, he more often than not acts like a hooligan and it’s a damn wonder that he hasn’t been expelled yet so you’re in no position to judge someone else's parenting.”

And through it all he actually maintains eye contact, his voice a cool calm, his head held high and his shoulders squared. He seems the complete opposite of the boy Euphemia has seen for the past few hours and she realises how much he looks like Orion.

Then, as quickly as it came, the moment is gone. His eyes widen and his breath hitches. He takes a step back and lowers his head.

Euphemia doesn't know what to say, stunned by Regulus’ sudden change in demeanor. The kitchen is quiet for what feels like far too long but is probably only a couple of seconds.

“May I go back to bed?” Regulus asks quietly.

“Yeah, go ahead.” Euphemia says and Regulus leaves the room as quickly as is possible without running.

Euphemia sinks down in the chair again. Taking in Sirius is one thing, for a long time she’s figured they would some day, but with Regulus they’re in way over their heads, in more ways than one. But they will make it work, for both Regulus’ and Sirius’ sake.

###

“Do you reckon he’s still asleep?” James askes Sirius as they both stand in the hallway looking at the door to Regulus’ room.

“It’s noon.” Sirius answers without taking his eyes of the door which to his knowledge hasn’t been opened since sometime last night.

He has to admit to himself that he’s getting a bit, worried isn’t the right word. Curious? A vision of Regulus’ wand on the floor of the Black estate flashes through his mind. Okay yeah he’s worried, but he will never admit that outloud.

”Yeah. So do you think he’s asleep? I mean last night was quiet..uh..hectic?” James asks again.

Sirius cocks his head to the side.

“I don’t know.”

Is Regulus a deep sleeper? It’s on the long list of things that Sirius doesn’t know about his brother.

“Should we knock?” 

Sirius looks over at James bewildered.

“No!”

“What are you so afraid of?”

“You don’t know my brother like I do.”

“He didn’t really come of as particularly threatening last night.”

“That’s because he was in shock, just wait, soon he’ll be back to his usual sarcastic, scheming self.” Sirius says with a failed attempt at a humerus laugh. Then he frowns at the door again “Surely he’s alright?”

“Mom healed him last night but what if he like fell out of bed in the night and reopened the wound and then fainted from blood loss or something?”

At this Sirius turns fully to look at James.

“You think he could have?”

James shrugs.

Sirius bites his thumbnail looking more intently at the door.

Sirius knocks on the door. After a moment it opens and Regulus stands leaning against the doorframe eyebrows raised.

“Hey you.” Sirius says feeling awkward, a feeling that is quickly replaced with annoyance over the fact that he feels awkward talking to his own brother.

“I haven’t fainted. Nor have I lost my hearing.” Regulus responds curtly, sparing James a quick glance before looking back at his brother. Then he sighs, rolls his eyes. “If that is all?” And he goes to close the door.

“I was gonna tell you..” Sirius says putting a hand on the door. “That since everyone woke up so late the house elves made brunch, blueberry pancakes. If you want any it’s in the kitchen.”

“I know, Holly brought me some.”

“Oh?”

“Yeah.” Regulus says as he opens the door a little wider gesturing to an empty plate on the desk. 

“Okay then.” Sirius says as he turns to leave.

“Wait, do you know if I’m expected at dinner tonight or do you think it would be okay if I ate up here?”

Now, Sirius knows that no one in the Potter family would be too offended if Regulus didn’t join them for dinner, Mia had told him just half an hour ago that she understands that is will take Regulus some time to settle in, but Sirius also knows that Regulus won't leave that room unless something forces him to.

“Yes, you’re expected downstairs.” He says.

“It’s usually around half past six.” James shimes in.

“Great.” Regulus says in a voice that suggests that he finds the situation anything but and then he closes the door in Sirius’ face.

“Well at least we know that he isn’t dead. And that he has freakishly good hearing.” James whispers on the way downstairs.

Sirius just sighs. Somehow he had hoped that things would be different now, that away from their parents Regulus would be different. But it’s only been a few hours, maybe Mia is right, maybe he just needs some time.

###

At six twenty five Regulus descends the stairs only to realise that he has no idea where the dining room is. Well this floor can’t have that many rooms, it can’t be too hard to find.

There are three doors in the hallway that don’t lead outside and he knows that one goes to the kitchen and one goes to a sitting room so Regulus takes the third one. 

Inside he is met with a room were three of the high walls are covered from floor to ceiling with bookcases and the third wall with high windows. In the middle of the room there is a fireplace with four armchairs in front of it and by the windows there is a long table at which he finds Sirius and James playing chess.

“Look who came out of his lair.” Sirius says as he briefly looks up from the chess board before looking down on it again, looking more concentrated than a game of chess constitutes.

“Isn’t dinner at six thirty?” Regulus asks.

“About six thirty.” Sirius says with a dismissive wave of his hand as if Regulus is a fly he’s trying to swat away.

“Check.” James says smugly as he moves his queen.

Sirius reaches for the board and his hand jerks sending several pieces to the floor.

“Is someone being a sore loser? You know having a tantrum and throwing things around is not going to help you more now than it did when you were younger.” Regulus says but the other two don’t seem to listen, Sirius is frustratingly rubbing his arm and James has suddenly become very serious.

“Mate you really should have that checked out.” James says.

“If there was a way to cure Sirius’ anger issues our parents would have found it by now.” Regulus says as he leans against one of the bookcases.

“No, I mean that he should go to a healer to make sure that there isn’t any permanent damage from the cruciatus your banshee of a mother put him under!”

“What are you talking about?”

“That your brother was tortured while you sat back and did nothing because you were too much of a coward to help.” James answers as he stands up.

“James.” Sirius says quietly as he puts a hand on James’ arm.

“That’s a lie!” Regulus says as he pushes himself away from the bookcase.

“Is it now?” James says with a humorless laugh.

“It is.” Regulus says but then he looks at his brother. Sirius has always worn his heart on his sleeve, try as he might, when it comes to things that are important, he is a terrible liar. Regulus can read Sirius like an open book and though he wishes that he could he can’t deny the truth he sees there.

There is a long horrible silence as James puts a hand on the hand that Sirius is resting on his arm.

“That’s why you were screaming? I heard you but I..I never considered...that’s..” Regulus doesn't finish. Instead he turns around and rushes to a bathroom he had found upstairs. 

He locks the door behind him and sits down on the toilet bowl with his elbows on his knees, resting his forehead in his hands. He feels like he might throw up. He tries desperately to stop crying, he rolls his eyes back to look at the ceiling, he starts dubbeling numbers in his head and gets to 524 288 before he loses track and starts over. Nothing helps. His efforts to not make any sound makes it hard to breath and he tries to take deep breaths but they come in shakey gasps. 

Come on you idiot, you have the emotional control of a toddler, Regulus berates himself. 

He goes over to the mirror above the sink and try to dry the tears but they just keep coming and the more he tries to stop them the more heavy the flow gets.

He knows that his mother is capable of a lot, but using an unforgivable? On her on kin? Had his father been there? Had he tried to stop her?

Regulus should have tried to stop her. He knew something was wrong when he heard the screaming, sure he had heard his brother scream before but not like that. The scream had sounded feral, non human, or rather like a person experiencing so much pain that all their humanity leaves them, leaving them with nothing but the animalistic part that, try as it might, humanity hasn’t quite yet managed to lose.

He should have realised. Maybe he had, somewhere deep down, but he’d been too much of a coward to accept it.

That must be why Sirius was already packed and hadn't told him about it, why he was going to be left behind without a word. Regulus understands. He had been too weak to help his brother so Sirius had ran to someone who would.

Regulus sinks down on the floor and leans his head back on the wall. Closing his eyes tightly he waits for it to pass, waits for the moment when he regains control of his body, wondering if he ever will.

###

Sirius had finally agreed to tell James’ parents so James had fetched them. His mom had asked him to give them privacy and Sirius hadn’t protested so he hadn’t either.

Which is how he finds himself sitting on the stairs staring at the door to the library whilst his mom is examining Sirius on the other side.

As James hears footsteps behind him he doesn’t turn around, they’re too light to be his dad and James is too mad to acknowledge Regulus right now. How could he let that happen too his own brother? Maybe he didn’t know exactly what was going on but he had heard Sirius scream, how could he just have ignored it?

Regulus sits down a few steps behind him.

“Where’s Sirius?”

“In the library, my mom is checking him over to make sure he doesn't have any lasting nerve damage from the cruciatus.” James says quietly, eyes still on the door.

James hears some shuffling behind him and then it’s quiet for a while. Eventually he angrily wipes away his tears and turns around to tell Regulus to fuck off but stops short at the sight of unshed tears in Regulus’ eyes, he can’t remember if he’s ever seen Regulus cry before.

“I should have done something, I’m sorry.” Regulus almost whispers, a single tear spilling out of his left eye.

James is about to wholeheartedly agree and say that Regulus should be sorry, but again he doesn't.

For a moment the sight of Regulus on the stairs is replaced by an old memory of Sirius in their second year dorm.

“I should stand up to them.” Sirius had said bitterly. “I’m just too much of a coward.”

“Your doing what you need to do in order to keep yourself safe, there’s nothing cowardly in that.” James remember Remus saying. 

Now James looks at Regulus, he is just as much a victim as Sirius is, and he feels his anger melting away leaving him with nothing but sadness.

“Regulus listen, there was nothing you could have done. Against two adults, trained in the dark arts non the less...you might have just made things worse. I realise that this is hypocritical coming from me but there is nothing wrong with sitting out a battle you can’t win, preserving your strength for the next one.”

Regulus actually looks him in the eyes for a long time and it isn’t an angry glare like the other times that has happened, it’s a calculating, assessing look.

The moment ends when both of them look to the library door as it opens and Sirius as well as James’ parents step out.

“Well?” James questions.

“Nothing permanent, it should end in a few days.” Sirius says looking drained.

“It’s been a long day, let’s eat.” James’ dad says, looking close to tears himself.

Regulus descends the stairs and James’ parents both go into the dining room leaving the kids in the hall.

Sirius and Regulus looks at each other for a moment, after a while Sirius nods and James gets the impression that some quiet communication has happened between them. It feels strange to James, Sirius conveying some sort of message that he doesn’t understand.

As Sirius turns his back on Regulus to go to the dining room James sees Regulus reach out a hand to Sirius’ shoulder but seems to think better of it and drops the hand again before it can make contact.

###

The next three days Regulus is unusually civil, he spends a few hours a day outside of his room, sometimes in the library and sometimes in the garden, always with a book open in his lap. He even plays a few games of chess with James and Sirius and when they do they talk, not about anything too serious but they talk about teachers, quidditch, Peeves.

Sirius has the sneaking suspicion that Regulus is only making the effort because he feels bad but Sirius will take what he can get. It feels nice to have his brother tell him good morning or see Regulus roll his eyes when Sirius complains about homework or discusses pranks with James.

Regulus is still very quiet around Mia and Monty but honestly Sirius isn’t surprised he just hopes that it will change given time, talking to adults who aren’t insane would be good for his brother.

James often pesters Sirius about addressing the purple hipogriffs in the room namely Regulus’ views on blood supremacy and how to deal with the furry little problem. Sirius though is doing anything in his power to avoid those topics, he knows that one wrong step will make Regulus stop talking to him again and he isn’t ready to let that happen.

James calls that emotional manipulation and says that Sirius shouldn’t let himself be controlled like that, that it’s just an extension of his parents hold over him. Sirius can’t really fault that logic but he can’t explain to James why that dosen’t change his mind. James is an only child, he wouldn’t understand. 

But Sirius knows that the so called purple hippogriffs are always lurking in the shadows, he knows that it’s only a question of time before they step out into the light no matter if he wants them to or not. He can only hope that they will all make it through the fallout relatively unscathed.


	6. Two Steps Back

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Might update quicker she said, well, here we are at last, hope you enjoy it. 
> 
> Also, if there is anything in particular you would like to see/see more of in this story feel free to write it in the comments and I’ll consider it.

Dear Regulus 

Your father and I know that this is not your fault, we know that Sirius coerced you and we are not angry with you. I cannot fathom what lies that demon spawn has told you to make you turn your back on your family like this.

But you are smart, you can see through him. It is time that you stop this foolishness and return to where you belong, now, before this becomes public. You do not want to bring dishonour on the family, do you?

I love you my son. Just come home and all will be forgiven.

Walburga Black

“He will find out eventually you know.”

“I know.” Sirius sighs without turning around to look at James.

He walks over to the kitchen sink and drops the letter into it with a quiet “Incendio” as James opens a window to let out the burnt smell.

It’s the fifth letter to Regulus in as many days, one every morning since they arrived but Regulus hasn’t seen any of them, Sirius has made sure of that. Sirius’ inability to sleep in and Regulus’ tendency to sleep like the dead in the morning has made that quite easy.

Two of the letters have consisted of strongly worded threats and James had stared at Sirius in silent bewilderment and fury after reading the first one, but those are not the letters Sirius is afraid of Regulus reading. It’s the other ones, the ones with claims of love and forgiveness that scares him.

Regulus is sure that running away in and of itself had been an unforgivable act and Sirius knows that even the slightest hint that he may be redeemed will send Regulus scurrying back to their parents like an obedient puppy, furry little problem completely disregarded. Sirius shudders to think what might happen to his brother back in their clutches, he would inevitably die within a month.

James is right though, the only reason their parents haven’t done anything more than sending letters is due to their fear of the public scrutiny that might entail, but it’s only a question of time before they do something more drastic and it doesn't take a genius to figure out where Sirius and Regulus are. When that time comes Sirius doesn’t only fear for Regulus. That first morning Sirius had received a letter of his own that made it crystal clear that his parents won’t try to force him back but there are plenty of other things they could do. He also fear for the Potters.

“Maybe we should leave.” Sirius says watching the flames die down.

“Sure thing, where are we going? Will we be back for lunch or should I pack something?”

“James I’m serious. Shut up.” Sirius turns around and holds up a hand before James can make a pun. “We’re putting you and your parents in danger by being here, the Blacks have a lot of connections, there’s no telling what they could get away with.” He looks at the ashes in the sink imagining the entire house in flames, it would be so easy to make that seem like an accident.

“Sirius, we’ve discussed this before, we can handle it, my parents have connections to and like Remus says, we can’t let our lives be controlled by fear. Come on mate we want you here, it’s worth every risk. But if you insist on leaving I’ll be leaving to. Don’t do that to my poor parents, yeah?”

“What do you think of me, I could never take their miracle baby from them, that would be cruel.” Sirius says his mood elevated a little, for the moment.

“Guess you’ll have to stay here then.” James says as he starts to look through the rest of the morning mail. “And on the subject of Remus, you should write to him, he’s worried about you.”

“Full moon was only a few days ago, I don’t want to add to his stress.”

“Are you sure that’s the reason? This isn’t a way to punish yourself for what happened with Snape? He’s forgiven you, it’s due time you forgive yourself.”

Sirius opens his mouth to answer but stops as someone else enters the kitchen.

“What’s that smell? Sirius did you try to cook something?” Regulus says as he takes an apple from a fruit bowl on the table.

“Good morning to you too. You know, there’s other foods in the fridge.”

Regulus just huffs as he stalks out of the room.

“The fridge isn’t as scary as it looks! Do you want me to hold your hand to make it better?!” Sirius shouts after him.

“I’m not going to dignify that with a response!”

“You just did!”

“Stubborn git.” Sirius mutters. Regulus has refused to touch anything electrical since they got here.

“Must be a family trait.” James says.

“What?”

“Being a stubborn git.”

“I am not -”

“Are you going to write to Remus?” James says with a smug smile.

###

Dear Moony

I’m sorry that I haven’t written, I wasn’t sure if you wanted me to after everything that happened, with Snape and, well, the other stuff.

Prongs tells me it was a tough, you know what, nothing you can’t handle I’m sure but I hope it gets better soon.

Prongs also tells me that he told you that me and Regulus are at his place and that he told you about Regulus’ predicament. But don’t worry about me, I’m fine, I’m happy to be out of that hell hole. I’m not so sure about Regulus though. I can tell that he isn’t sleeping much or eating much although I’m not sure if that started after the bite or after we ran away or earlier and I don’t know how to help him or even if I should, he certainly doesn't seem like he wants me to. If you would like to offer your advice it wouldn’t be amiss, you’re usually the reasonable one and, well, you can relate to him now in a way I can’t even begin to.

Greetings,  
Padfoot

###

“Shall we address the fact that you have a werewolf friend named Remus Lupin?” Regulus says as he waits for James to take his next step towards his inevitable loss in their current chess game.

James immediately looks up at Regulus and then turns his gaze to Sirius who is sitting beside him.

“I mean he probably wouldn’t mind speaking to you about it, it isn’t really our place to, to speak of his experience..” James starts uncertainty.

“But if you need to talk to someone I’m totally here for you..” Sirius continuous.

“Oh Merlin, no! I don’t want to have that conversation right now.” Regulus hastens to explain. “Just, Remus, Lupin.” He says slowly. “Was he named by a seer? Or was fate just unusually cruel to him?”

The two other boys glances at each other in confusion followed by an unanimous exclamation of “What?”.

“Never mind. You two need to read more.” Regulus sighs, turning his attention back to the chess board.

“Lily often says that.” James says with a fond smile.

“Can’t we go ten minutes?” Sirius groans but the smile on his face reveals that he clearly isn’t as annoyed as he’s trying to appear.

“Lily? The redheaded gryffindor in your year?”

“The one and only, also known as the love of James’ life?”

“Shut up!”

“You are joking right?” Regulus asks.

The smiles quickly drop from the others’ faces and Sirius’ eyes narrow in a way terribly reminiscent of Walburga.

“What?” Sirius says.

“To be friends with them is one thing, but to court one?”

“Them?” James says sharply.

“She’s a mudblood isn’t she?”

“Regulus!” Sirius now nearly shouts as he stands up glaring daggers at his brother.

“It’s unnatural. And if you had children with her you would contribute to diluting wizarding blood.”

“You know some people think you’re unnatural, that people with lycanthropy shouldn’t marry or have children or practise magic or even live! You should think about that!” James shouts as he storms out of the room.

“You know what? I had hoped that maybe you weren't as much of a bigoted ass as you appear, that maybe you were just repeating what mother and father said because you were too much of a coward to do anything else. But we’re away from them now and you, you’re still the same. I guess it was always just you. You’re no better than the rest of them.”

“Them? You mean our family? You should be more grateful to the ones who raised you.”

“Grateful?” Sirius says with a humorless laugh, shaking his head. “What should I be grateful for exactly? Being cursed by the cruciatus? Here, let me show you what they’re like.” Sirius says as he picks up an issue of the Daily Prophet from the table and shakily holds it out to Regulus. “Should I be grateful to them?”

Regulus looks down at the front page, at the bold letters that read “Jet another attack on a muggleborn”.

“Our family has nothing to do with that!”

“Yeah, like you really believe that.”

“And besides the attacks are blown way out of proportion, you don’t know if that had anything to do with her bloodstatus, she could be a murderer for all we know.”

“Come on, not even you can be that naive.”

“Furthermore if it was because of her bloodstatus, I’m not saying the attacks aren’t wrong, but you can’t honestly say you’re surprised. It’s been coming for years and if they weren’t provoking it by trying to take over the ministry and...”

“Provoking it!” Sirius shouts as he snatches up his wand from beside the abandoned chess board.

Regulus feels cold sweat break out all over his body and he stops in his tirade for a moment, stops moving, stops breathing but only for a moment.

“What are you going to do?” He sneers. “Curse me? Not so different from mother after all, are you?”

Shaking Sirius stalks towards him, pushing him hard in the chest, sending him crashing to the floor and into a bookcase behind him.

“I wish you’d just leave, I don’t want you in my life anymore.” Sirius says before marching out of the room. “I apologise for bringing him here.” He says to Fleamont whom he passes in the doorway.

Regulus feels tears stinging in his eyes but refuses to let them fall.

His heart falls even further as Fleamont walks towards him but he is confused when instead of reaching for a wand the older man reaches out a hand to help him up.

But then Regulus sees the rings on Fleamont’s hand, the silver rings, and he understands. He takes it knowing it’ll only get worse if he waits.

###

Fleamont had exited his bedroom when he heard angry footsteps coming up the stairs.

“What happened? Are you okay?” He had asked, seeing his son storming past him.

“We let a slytherin into the house! That’s what happened!” Was the angry shout he had received in return.

Hearing angry voices from down stairs he had then hurried down, ready to break up a fight if need be, he loves Sirius like a son but that boy sure has a temper. 

After having Sirius storm past him in much the same manner James had Fleamont’s head spins as he tries to figure out what has happened and how best to deal with it. One thing at a time though.

“Are you okay?” He asks reaching out a hand to the teenager on the floor.

Regulus almost seems hesitant to accept the help for a moment and Fleamont is just about to drop his hand when Regulus places a smaller sweaty hand in his. Fleamont pulls him up. 

“Thank you sir.” The boy says as Fleamont lets go of his hand and takes a step back.

“Are you okay?” Fleamont says as he surveys the teenager who seems to be just on the verge of tears.

“Yes sir.” Regulus nods, looking just beyond Fleamont’s head.

Fleamont raises a critical eyebrow as he looks at Regulus’ shaking hands. Regulus follows Fleamont’s gaze and the the tips of his ears go pink. He puts his hands behind his back and squares his shoulders, taking deep breaths, seeming to be trying to calm himself.

“We have talked about the use of sir.”

“Sorry mister Potter.”

“It’s alright. Do you want to tell me what happened?”

Regulus bites his lip.

“We were shouting and I was being rude and disrespectful to your son, I’m sorry.”

Fleamont sighs, realising that it will probably be easier to get the full story from James.

“Are you sure you’re not hurt?”

“Yes mister Potter.” 

It’s quiet for a moment and Regulus glances searchingly at Fleamont.

“You may go if you want.” Fleamont says as he realises that the boy is probably aching to leave but will do very little without express permission. 

At that Regulus nods quickly and hurries out of the room and up the stairs.

Fleamont closes his eyes just breaths for a moment. He wishes Euphemia was here, they’re always better at dealing with this sort of thing as a team but she’s visiting a friend at the moment so he’ll have to do this on his own.

Fleamont is just about to go upstairs when a tousled looking James enters the library.

“You haven’t gotten into a physical fight with someone have you?” 

“Just my pillow.” James gets out between clenched teeth. 

“Good. Now would you like to tell me-”

“He called someone a mudblood and he said that it’s ‘unnatural’ for muggleborns and ‘purebloods’ to date and then he said something about diluting wizarding blood and he said it so casually as well like he was talking about the weather.” James rushes out before Fleamont can even finish the question.

“With ‘him’ I’m assuming you mean Regulus.”

“Who else would I mean? And I know he’s Sirius’ brother but he doesn't even like him, barely talked to him until a few days ago, and he hangs around with assholes in school. Why are we helping him?”

“What do think we should do instead? Throw him out?”

“Maybe?” James says with a frustrated shrug.

“What good will throwing him out do? Do you think that will change anything? Make him seen things differently?”

“No.” James sighs. “They’re brothers, I don’t understand how they can be so different.”

“Do you really think they’re that different? You know what I first noticed about Regulus? After the physical similarities to Sirius of course. It was how much he reminded me of the Sirius I met during the christmas holidays back in your first year, timid, lonely, seaming to feel like a fish out of water, hunching over like he thought that if he was small and quiet enough people would for forget that he was there.”

“He wasn’t a bigoted git.”

“Wasn’t Sirius a bit narrow-minded when you first met him?”

“He was just eleven and besides he changed.”

“Regulus might change too, maybe he just needs some good influences.” Fleamont says as he ruffles his son’s hair.

“I’ll believe it when I see it.” James says as he swats his dad’s hands away from his hair. “And in the meantime I don’t want him here.”

“Well that isn’t your call. And give it some time, yeah? People can surprise you?”

Fleamont really hopes he’s right. He needs to believe that Regulus can change, that people can’t be irreparably damaged at fifteen. He needs to believe that the world isn’t that cruel.

“Yeah right.” James says quietly. “You know-”

But what Fleamont may or may not know is never revealed because they are interrupted by what sounds like exploding glass followed by a loud crash from upstairs. James looks up at the ceiling and sighs.

“That’d be Sirius.” He says and puts out a hand to stop his dad from going upstairs. ”I’m on it.”

###

Opening the door to Sirius’ bedroom James has to step out of the way of a book being hurled his way. James’ first instinct is to look to the window but the sound of glass must have come from the glass that had stood on Sirius’s night stand but that is now laying in shrads on the floor and the bed.

As James closes the door Sirius looks up at him for a moment and then kicks the bed angrily before sinking down on the floor, leaning against the side of the it. 

Sirius has the habit of bottling his emotions up best he can until that fragile dam breaks and everything comes pouring out at once and after living in the same dorm as him James has grown accustomed to the wreckage that outpour causes. Consequently James doesn't even bat an eye as he carefully steps over the rubble of things that had previously been on Sirius’ desk.

As he gets to Sirius he sits down beside him, careful to avoid the splinters of glass.

“Piss off James, I don’t want to talk about it.”

“We don’t have to.” James says but internally he groans. Sirius rarely wants to talk about things that saddens him and James really thinks that he should. But Sirius doesn’t know how to and James doesn't know how to help him so they just sit in silence.

James carefully, questingly, puts an arm around Sirius’ shoulder, ready to pull away if Sirius indicates that he wants him to. But Sirius leans in to the embrace and James can feel him shake as he starts to cry. He cries for the times he hasn’t cried the last few days and it doesn’t stop for several minutes.

Sirius has tried to act like he isn’t too bothered about anything, that his only worries are for Regulus and not himself. But James hears him moving about at night through the wall between their rooms, sees him spacing out now and again, seamingly lost in his thoughts, and sees his leg bounce under the dining room table. 

As they sit there in silence waiting for the tears to ebb James comes to a decision that Sirius won’t like. Sirius needs help and there is only one person that can reach him when he’s like this.

###

Dear Moony

You’ll probably receive a letter from Padfoot before you receive this and the prat has probably written that he’s okay and that everything is fine and I’m sure you know him well enough to not believe that for a second. But you may not know quite how far from the truth that is because there is something I haven’t told you in my other letters, something he really doesn't want me to tell you but I think that you should know. He was hit with the cruciatus curse, by his hag of mother and Merlin knows what effects that might have on him.

He’s constantly on edge like he’s waiting for armageddon and he has had nightmares every night since he came. I have offered him dreamless sleep potion but naturally the stubborn idiot refuses to take it.

Today after dinner him and Regulus had a fight after Regulus called Lily a mudblood. By the way, how do I deal with having that prejudice little shit in my house? Afterwards Sirius completely broke down in his room and he refuses to talk about it with anyone.

I know things have been a bit weird between the two of you but he listens to you more than he listens to anyone else and you’re the one he comes to when he’s like this. He needs you. I can’t help him on my own. Please come over, I’ve already squared it with my parents.

Best regards  
Prongs


	7. A Question About Love

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So here we have a new chapter at last. Again I haven’t proofread it before posting, sorry if there are typos, I’ll get on that soon. Hope you enjoy it nonetheless.

Sirius and mother really do have more in common than either of them would like to admit, Regulus thinks as he hears the commotion from the room across the hall. Although maybe he had been crossing a line with that comment considering what happened the night before they left.

Regulus is still trying to grasp what mother did. What could Sirius possible have done to warrant that? Nothing, nothing short of murder could have warranted that, Regulus knows, and Sirius would never. Then why?

Mother sometimes reacts to strong emotions before thinking things through, much like Sirius. That must be what happened and mother surely regretted it once she’d calmed down. Maybe she will write soon, apologising and asking for Sirius to come home. Regulus doubts that Sirius would and somehow that makes him feel a bit better but he knows that’s selfish, Sirius shouldn’t be without a family just because Regulus can no longer have one.

Until a few minutes ago he’d thought that he’d at least have Sirius but eight words and that naive dream had shattered.

“I don’t want you in my life anymore.”

He starts crying and doesn’t even bother trying to stop himself, he knows that he can’t.

Regulus accepted the ever present loneliness in his life a long time ago, but that had not prepared him for the agony of being completely alone.

He stiffens as he hears footsteps coming up the stairs but they're too light to be mr Potter’s and soon he hears James opening the door to Sirius’ room.

Sirius’s room, it isn’t just a guest room like the one Regulus is currently in, in Sirius’ room there are posters and trinkets that Sirius has crealy left behind from previous visits. Maybe Sirius isn’t without a family after all, maybe he’s found a new one. Regulus is grateful for that, despite their differences he loves Sirius, more than he’s ever loved anyone. Beneath his naivety and corrupted views he’s a good person and deserves all the happiness he can get.

But Regulus doesn’t belong here.

He looks down at his right hand, at the angry burns where the silver rings had been pressed against his skin.

In a matter of minutes he had managed to anger not only Sirius but also both James and mr Potter, it’s only a matter of time before he’s thrown out. He needs to leave before that happens, Sirius wants him gone anyway.

With a resolve unparalleled to anything he’s felt for years he puts back the few items he’s taken out of his trunk, shrinks said trunk and puts it in his pocket. He takes his broom from where it’s leaning against the wardrobe, opens a window, climbs up on the desk underneath it and takes of.

It isn’t long until he spots a muggle town in the distance, when he does he lands and walks the last few kilometers. He curses silently to himself when he realises that he can’t shrink his brom, surrounded by adult wizards and witches the ministry can’t tell if he’s the one using magic at any given moment but if the uses magic here he’ll surely get expelled. Maybe he will be anyway, being a dark creature. He shakes his head, this is not the time.

The sun has started to set by the time he sits down on a low garden wall at the outskirts of the town. Only then does the severity of the situation really sink in. Where can he go? He has no money. Maybe he can sleep outside tonight but how will he get food?

And then another problem enters his mind. How will he get supplies for school? Granted, that will only be an issue if he survives that long.

Maybe it’s best if he doesn't. The idea doesn’t scare him as much as it did a few days ago. Even if he isn’t expelled he’ll never be able to have a proper job, he’ll never have a family and he’ll never have friends. What value does that kind of life have?

###

The sun is starting to set when George sees the young man, peculiarly dressed in long dark robes, sit down on the low stone wall surrounding his garden. As George moves closer he notices that it isn’t a man but a boy, no older than his own grandson and he can’t help but wonder what someone that age is doing outside alone at this hour.

“Good evening.” He says and the boy startles so violently that he almost falls of the wall.

###

“Mind if I sit with you?” The old man says.

Regulus doesn't answer but the man climbs over the wall anyway, with some difficulty, and sits down.

“Nice evening we have.”

Regulus nods, not knowing what else to do.

“I don’t think I’ve seen you before. Do you live close by?”

“No.” Regulus answers slowly as he looks the man up and down. He knows it’s rude to stare but he can’t help himself, he’s never been this close to a muggle before. It he’s being honest the situation unnerves him slightly.

“Well then, nice to meet you. I’m George.” The man says as he holds out a hand.

“Regulus.” Regulus says hesitantly as he reaches out his hand but then quickly stops himself and retracts it but not quickly enough.

“Are you hurt?” George says.

Regulus feels himself blush. “It’s not that bad.” He says, hiding his hand under his cloak.

“No, let me see.” George says urgently.

Not knowing what the strange man will do if Regulus refuses he reluctantly complies, holding out his hand. He hears a sharp intake of breath.

“That’s one hell of a burn, wait here I’ll get the first aid kit.” George says and starts walking towards the house behind them.

Thinking that it would be nice to have it heald and also, despite himself, a bit curious what muggle healing looks like, Regulus does wait. Mother would not approve, but what does that matter now? It isn’t long before the man returns with a red box in his hands and reclaims his seat on the wall.

“Let’s see now. Do you mind?” George says as he gestures to Regulus hand.

Regulus holds out his hand again and George takes it in his. Regulus can’t help but notice that the muggle is more gentle than anyone has been with him for years and he hates how his eyes starts burning as if he’s about to cry. He’s acting like a small child. He’s a Black, nothing should have this effect on him, certainly not a muggle.

George stars putting some sort of muggle potion on the burn. It stings and Regulus flinches and pulls his hand away.

“I know it stings a bit but it’s necessary so that it won’t get infected.” George says apologetically.

“Sorry.” Regulus says quietly as he holds out his hand again and keeps it perfectly still as the rest of the potion is applied.

“It’s nothing to apologise for son. You should go and see a doctor in the morning but I’m going to bandage it for now.”

Regulus nods and watches silently as George’s calloused hands gently wrap his hand in a white gauze.

“Thank you sir.” Regulus says quietly putting his hands in his lap.

“Not to worry.” George says and then they sit quietly for a while, George sending glances Regulus’ way now and again as Regulus watches his hands, pretending not to notice.

“Are you waiting for someone?” George finally says.

“No.”

“Do you want to borrow my phone so you can call someone?”

“No.” Regulus says, not knowing what a ‘phone’ is but not really caring. If it’s anything like floocalling he doesn't have anyone to ‘call’ anyway.

“Are you alright?”

Regulus nods.

“Someone your age shouldn’t be out alone this late.”

Regulus doesn’t answer as he fiddles with the hem of his cloak.

“It isn’t safe.” The man continues.

“Whatever.” Regulus sighs, starting to get a bit annoyed. Why does this man care anyway?

“You teenagers really need to take your own safety more seriously.”

“Well, I have lost everything of any value so excuse me for not really seeing the point.” Regulus doesn't really know what makes him say it and for a moment he panics but then he thinks `What the hell, I’m not gonna see this man again anyway`.

“You’re alive, aren’t you? So you haven’t lost everything of value.”

“I don’t know how valuable that is. Sometimes I wonder if it’s worth it to keep going.” When he starts he doesn't stop it seems. It does feel a bit liberating though, to say it outloud.

“I also felt like that once.” George says quietly after a while.

“And yet you’re here.” Regulus says dryly.

“Yes, I had started volunteering at a homeless shelter, I figured that if I can’t live for my own sake I could live for the sake of others. Eventually I found reasons to live for myself as well and once I did it was like a veil had been pulled from around me and I realised that those reasons are surprisingly abundant.”

“What reasons did you find?”

“The feeling of rain on your face on a warm summer day, the sound of jazz music, babies smiling at you on the bus, going to small farmers markets or community festivals marveling at what the community has put together, making someone smile, reading a good book, seeing impressionistic art and getting a glimpse into the artist’s mind, petting a cat, the moment when a wild bird eats from your hand, sunsets, the enchanted place the woods becomes when it snows a lot, seeing everything come back to life in spring, talking to older people a hearing them tell you their life story, that weird moment of intimacy when you’re singing a song in a park and a stranger joins in, writing, road trips, laying down in a meadow surrounded by the smell of grass and wildflowers, seeing someone get engaged and random teenagers you find on your garden wall, to name a few.” George says smiling, looking at the sunset.

Regulus can’t help but smile a little himself, amused by the old man’s words and the way he seems so unbothered by an unknown teenager sitting on his wall.

“And then I found good friends and meet the love of my life, had kids and grandkids and now I can’t understand how I was ever in a hurry to leave this world and the ones who I love behind.”

Regulus takes a moment to marvel at how his first conversation with a muggle is going, how normal and companionable it feels. Or normal might not be the right word to describe it, he never talks to anyone about things like these, certainly not people this much older than himself. Of curse, talking to a muggle like this is disreputable. But it does feel nice, somehow. I must be truly desperate for company, Regulus ponders, to accept this.

“The only person who could possible love me thinks I’m a horrible person.” He says after a while, realising that yes, he is desperate.

“Do you think you are?”

“Maybe. I’ve stood back when people have gotten hurt.”

“If you know you’ve done wrong and are willing to changes than you’re not a bad person. When I was a young boy there was this family in my neighborhood, the only black family in our little community and people weren’t very welcoming. I was lucky, I’ve never had a target on my back like that and I should have used that privilege to help them best I could but I didn’t and I’ve never stopped regretting that. But I’ve learnt from it and I'm a better person today.”

As George says that he’s never had a target on his back Regulus can’t help but think about the wizards and witches who would hurt him just for sport if they could get away with it, which they probably could. George and his family are in constant danger, now more than they’ve been since the Grindelwald wars, and they don’t even know it. It suddenly strikes Regulus how incredibly unfair that is, they can’t even prepare themselves.

He wonders if he would protect George, if something were to happen right now. Would he risk his own safety to do so? He doesn’t know. He doesn’t want to know.

They sit quietly for a while, watching the sky darken until the silent street is lit only by the street lamps.

“Do you want me to walk you home?” George says.

Regulus doesn't answer, doesn't want to admit to the shameful truth that he’s got nowhere to go.

In his periphery view he can see George looking at him with a frown. Worried that he might have angered the man by not answering Regulus quickly speaks.

“No thank you sir, I , I can’t go...home.”

“Did something happen?” George asks gently.

Regulus doesn't answer that, doesn’t know how to.

“Do you feel unsafe going home?”

“No, it’s not..” Regulus begins but then pauses, he wouldn’t be safe going home but he can’t exactly explain to a muggle why that is. Not that he would admit to being a dark creature to a wizard either.

George seems to take that as an affirmative. “Do you have any friends or family you can stay with?”

“I stayed with one of my brother’s friends, but my brother hates me, he doesn't want me there anymore.”

“I’m sure that’s not true.”

Regulus lets out a short laugh whilst he blinks away tears. “We had a fight and he literally said that he doesn’t want me there anymore, so.”

“People say a lot of things they don’t mean when they’re angry.” George says but Regulus doesn’t answer.

”I have a brother, or had, he did a lot of stupid stuff, hurtful stuff, but nothing hurt more than him disappearing. We had a fight that night, I said some regretful things and the next morning he was gone and I never saw him again. Trust me, whatever happened, he wants you to come back. Don’t leave him with a lifetime of regrets.” George says after a minute.

Regulus doesn't think Sirius would regret never seeing him again and yet a small hope is sparked at George’s words. A tiny pathetic hope. Sirius had taken him with him after all. Maybe leaving had been a bit rash. Maybe he should go back. Is it too late to go back? Maybe they’ve already noticed that he’s missing. Will he not be allowed back then? Or will he be punished in an other way?

He sits and stares at the ground for a while. This had truly been extremely stupid, Regulus muses now that he’s gotten his head back together. He really doesn't have anywhere else to go. Eventually he decides that even the tiniest change of being allowed to stay will have to be enough. It doesn't matter if they all hate him, he can endure glares, insults, curses. He needs a roof over his head and he’s a slytherin, he’ll do what he needs to do in order to survive. He just needs to be more careful to keep his head down from now on.

“I’ll be going back to my brother’s friend, thank you.” Regulus says, trying to sound confident in his decision, as he stands up.

“Do you want me to walk with you?” George says also standing up.

“No thank you, it isn’t far.” Regulus replies as he starts walking back the way he came filled with equal measures determination and trepidation.

###

James leaves Sirius’ room at around midnight but Sirius doesn't go to sleep, instead he stays on the floor. What’s the point? It’s not like he will sleep long anyway, before a dream rudely catapults him back to reality. Besides, he likes meeting the world with a sleep heavy mind. It makes everything duller, makes it easier to feel empty and at peace.

He tries to read but he can’t focus, as the sun rises he gives up and instead stares out at the sky, trying to ignore how his chest constricts painfully at the sight of the red light.

He must have fallen asleep at some point however because suddenly ha startles awake by a knock on the door.

“Yes?” He calls out as he stretches out, his muscles aching from having slept in an uncomfortable position.

“Can I come in?”

“Moony?” Sirius quickly scrambles to his feet and opens the door. “What are you doing here? Are you okay?” He says as he finds himself looking Remus over, as he always does first time seeing him after a full moon, looking for a limp, new scars. But there doesn't seem to be any, as far as he can see anyway with the long sleeve button down Remus is wearing.

“I’m fine.” Remus says dismissively as he goes to open a window. “You look like shit though.”

“Thanks.” Sirius says dryly but he feels his cheeks heating up slightly nonetheless and he pulls his fingers through his hair a few times. “Did you come here all the way from Wales just to insult me?”

“James asked me to come, he’s worried about you.”

“When is he not?” Sirius asks, evoking a snort from the other boy.

“To his credit it looks like you haven’t slept properly in days.”

“Oh? We match then.”

“You know, jokes about me often being tired stopped being funny sometime around the thirty-third time that you made one of them.” Remus says as he sits down in the desk chair, facing Sirius who sits down on the bed. Then Remus looks down at his hands as he quietly speaks again. “He also told me about what happened before you left, what Walburga did.”

“Not beating around the bush are we?” Sirius says after an uncomfortable stretch of silence.

“Sirius, we don’t need to talk about it if you don’t want to. I just thought you should know that I know.”

“There’s nothing to talk about. It happened, it’s over, I’m okay.”

“Really? Because then I’d really be worried, then there’s definitely something very wrong with you.”

“You’ve been through worse.”

“And do I seem okay to you?” Remus says, looking Sirius in the eyes and raising an eyebrow. “But, no, I haven’t, transforming may hurt but knowing that someone did that to you on purpose, your mother of all people, that’s something else entirely.”

Sirius turn to look away. “Do we have to talk about this?”

“No. But I think that maybe you should, not with me but with someone...else.”

“Do you want me to talk to a therapist?”

“It could help.”

“Have you?”

“Have I? Talked to a therapist? What was I going to tell them? Oh and by the way I turn into a murderous beast once a month?”

“I just want to forget it happened.” Sirius says quietly.

“But you won't, you never will so you might as well do the second best. Right?”

Sirius doesn't know what to say to that and the silence stretches on for a minute or so, until Remus seems to realise that it’s a dead end.

“So Regulus? Must be weird.” Remus says after a while.

“You have no idea.” Sirius says as he lays down on the bed a groans into a pillow. “That little bastard will be the end of me. He used the m-word yesterday and-” Sirius begins but stops when Remus doesn't appear the slightest bit surprised. “You don’t seem surprised. James told you. Didn’t he?”

“Yeah, the real question is why you were so surprised. I mean it’s not like it’s the first time.”

“I don’t know, I guess I thought it would be different away from our parents. I hoped that maybe he only agreed with them out of fear, you know?”

“So what are you going to do now?”

“No bloody clue. I still love him, despite it all. I will always love him for who he was when we were younger, even if he’s not that person anymore. Does that make me a horrible person?”

“Of course not, it means that you are a very loving person.”

Sirius smiles a little a this before his expression quickly turns sour again. “I keep thinking that maybe I could have done more for him, could have talked to him more, could have protected him from becoming … this.”

“Sirius, Regulus’ warped views are not your fault. Do you hear me? They are not your fault. it’s not your job to make him a good person. He’s not a child, he’s not much younger than us, at the end of the day he has to make that decision on his own, it’s his choice.”

“Yeah, maybe.” Sirius sighs. “Now can we talk about something a little less depressing? Have you had any letters from Lilly? Did they say anything about James?” Sirius smirks.

“No, if you must know we talked about books.”

“Romance books?”

“You two are impossible.” Remus says, but now he’s smirking to.

They talk for awhile but after Sirius yawns for the sixth time, Remus stands up.

“You should sleep some. And James asked me to give you this.” He says as he takes out a small vial from a pants pocket.

Sirius puts it on his night stand. “That conniving son of a bitch, using you like this to make me take a sleeping draught.”

“You really do seem to need one.” Remus says before leaves the room and closes the door behind him.

Sirius stares at the offending liquid. He doesn't need that, he’s not a child. And so he lays down under the covers, resolut to prove that he can sleep without it.

But sleep doesn’t come easy. Again and again his his mind his bombarded by memories of yesterday's fight, of Regulus’ hateful words and cold eyes. And then of Sirius himself reaching for his wand, of Regulus’ cold exterior cracking for just a moment and of what Sirius saw underneath. Terror.

‘It’s his choice’, Remus had said. Suddenly Sirius mind is flooded by other memories, older ones.

“_WHAT did you call her?!_”

“_I just spoke the truth, ignoring it doesn’t make it go away. I don’t get why you’re so obsessed with her anyway, she’s below you.”_

_“I’m not obsessed with her. I’m just doing what any decent person would do, not that that’s anything you would understand.”_

_“Merlin, you’re so naive.”_

_“I, am not the naive one!”_

_“Come on James he’s not worth it.”_

“_I suppose you’re right_.”

...

“_What are you staring at Lupin?...Piss off before I make you!”_

_…_

_“Mother says..”_

_“Well your mother is a bitch and an idiot.”_

“_James!”_

_“What Remus? I know you agree with me.”_

_..._

_“I’ve read about werewolves in muggle fairy tales, do they really exist?”_

“_Yeah, they’re horrendous monsters. I met one in Diagon Alley when I was younger, I was only seconds away from being eaten….Hey where did Remus go?”_

Sirius squeezes his eyes shut, putting his face in his hands, willing the memories to go away.

“_Hey Sirius, did you know that a muggle invented plumbing?”_

_…_

_“Think about it Sirius, really think about it. What makes them different from you and I?”_

...

“_There can be distrust and embitterment both against those with magic and those without but it doesn't need to be that way, just look at my parents.”_

_..._

_“Mia and I both like you a lot.”_

_“You shouldn't, I’m bad person, I’ve done horrible things.”_

“_You were just a child, Sirius, you still are. I’m going to tell you something no one your age likes to hear, we expect you to make mistakes. This is your time to grow and change, no one can expect you to get everything right from the start, especially if you’ve been taught the wrong things.”_

_“I still catch myself thinking it sometimes, things I know I shouldn't.”_

“_But you don’t say it, you don’t act on those thoughts and that makes a lot of difference. The world isn’t split into good people and bad people. We all got both light and dark inside us. What matters is the power we choose to act on. That’s who we really are_.”

It isn’t Regulus’ choice, it never has been, just like it wasn't Sirius’ choice. For all his wisdom there are certain things that Remus will never understand, that none of the other marauders will. Sirius didn’t change on his own and Regulus won’t either but shouting at him won’t work.

Sirius shots out of bed and hurries to the door. Regulus won’t listen to Sirius before he trusts him. Sirius will make damn sure that that happens, he can’t lose his brother, he just can’t.

Sirius crosses the hallway in two strides and knocks on the door to Regulus’ bedroom.

“Hey.” Regulus says quietly as he opens the door, looking off to the side of Sirius’ knee and he feels something crack inside of him. Avoiding eye contact is not an unusual practice for the youngest Black but Sirius is usually an exemption. This isn’t good.

“Look about yesterday, I’m sorry I pushed you but-” Sirius stops mid sentence to make a grab at Regulus’ right hand. “What is this?!”

“It’s nothing.” Regulus hisses as he pulls back his hand.

“Have you burnt yourself again? You idiot, you should have told someone that needs to be healed.”

“No! Mr. Potter never said that I could.”

“What?” Sirius says darkly, feeling cold sweat break out over his body.

“He never said I’m allowed to heal it.”

For a moment Sirius is completely lost for words. “Why? That’s..no...he wouldn’t. Did Fleamont do this to you?”

“He heard us fighting, you know the Potters are..” The term ‘blood traitors’ hangs heavily in the air. “Rather liberal” He says instead.

“That can’t be true.” Sirius says feeling faint. “He never.. They’re not like our parents. They have never hurt me.”

“That’s because you’re like them Sirius. Those who get punished are those who stand out, here you don’t.”

Sirius takes a step back and Regulus takes the opportunity to close the door leaving Sirius to stare blankly at it for a moment. At first he can feel nothing but shook and then the betrayal hits in and then wild, hot fury.

“You look pissed. What has the wannabe death-eater done this time?”

Sirius spins around to face James. “Don’t call him that!”

“Why? You know what he’s like at school, you heard what he said yesterday. I say we just chunk him out, he’s probably eager to leave anyway, can’t live with ´blood traitors´.”

“Stop. He’s just a kid.”

“That doesn't change what he is.”

“James, I used to be like that, I used to say things like that.”

“You changed!”

“Because you changed me! You and Moony and Wormtail and Lily and Marlene, heck even McGonagall. If it weren’t for the chance you guys gave me then I would still be like that too.”

“That’s not true.”

“”Yes it is, it most definitely is. He just needs help and throwing him out isn’t helpful, burning him isn’t helpful!”

“Burning him? What the hell are you on about?” James asks.

“”Your dad burned his hand with silver!”

“That’s a lie!”

“I saw it James!”

“Sirius stop!” Regulus says harshly.

Sirius whips his head around, not having noticed Regulus coming out in the hallway. “That son of a banshee burned him. Show him!” He says.

“No! Sirius please shut up!”

“How could you possibly believe that?!”

###

After talking to Sirius Remus goes outside in the garden where he’d said he would meet James. But with James not being there he sits down on the stone step leading up to the backdoor, closes his eyes and enjoys the sun.

He looks up as a shadow falls on him.

“Remus.” Mr. Potter says with a warm smile. “James said you would show some time today, it’s nice to see you.”

“Nice to see you too.” Remus says as he stands up and holds out his hand to shake the older man’s but quickly retracts it.

“Are you okay son?”

Remus feels himself blush. “I can’t...your rings.”

Surprised Mr. Potter looks down at his right hand and Remus can tell when it dawns on him because he gets a horrified look on his face. “Dear Merlin.”

“It’s fine really, it’s not something one usually thinks about if one doesn't have to, don’t worry.” Remus tries to reassure and then; “Do you hear shouting?”

###

“How could you possibly believe that?!” Remus hear James shout as they ascend the stairs.

Sirius is about to say something in return but instead turns sharply on Mr. Potter.

“I trusted you! How could you?!” Sirius shouts as he pushes the man hard against a wall.

“Sirius please, it’s fine.” Regulus gasps out.

Remus can’t help but stare at Regulus the first other werewolf he’s seen, except for Grayback. At least he doesn't have any wounds on his face. Yet. Regulus has one hand clenched in his hair, the other hanging loosely at his side and the burns on that hand are instantly recognizable. Suddenly Mr. Potters horrified face makes more sense.

“No! It’s not fine!” Sirius shouts in Mr. Potter’s face. “You hear? It’s not fine and we’re leaving! And Merlin help me if you dare try to stop us!”

Regulus is just silently shaking his head, his mouth slack, James is fuming and Mr. Potter has tears in his eyes.

“Sirius, he didn’t know.“ Remus hurries to say.

“Bullshit!”

“No really I didn’t.” Mr. Potter says, holding his hands up in a placating manner. “I was helping him of the floor, I didn’t consider that my rings are of silver. Regulus I am so sorry, I would never do that on purpose.”

Regulus just stares at them but Sirius backs away slightly at this although he continues to glare at he older man.

Mr. Potter though only have eyes for Regulus as he takes of his rings. “We’ll put these away, we’ll do a sweep of the house and put away everything silver. I’m terribly sorry for being so thoughtless, I promise you that it will never happen again.”

Regulus looks away and nods as he hunches his shoulders and tightly crosses his arms across his chest.

###

Sirius can tell that his brother wants to say something but can’t without starting to cry and thus remains standing mute against the wall as Fleamont goes to get healing supplies.

As Fleamont returns Sirius promptly takes the supplies from him. No, Fleamont hadn’t meant to burn Regulus but it’ll take a while until Regulus trusts him.

“Go and sit on your bed.” Sirius says, gesturing with a handful of healing supplies.

“I can take care of it myself.”

“No. Sit down.” Sirius orders and Regulus sighs but doesn’t argue any further, clearly worn out. He sits down and eyes Fleamont who’s standing in the doorway, James and Remus standing in the hallway beyond.

“I would never hurt either of you. Violence is never okay unless it’s self defense. What your parents did is very wrong. You do know that, right?” Fleamont says.

“They just want to help us do better, they don’t know any other way. They love us.”

Fleamont, James and Remus all look sick.

“That isn’t love. Do you hear me? That is not love.” Sirius says as he dumps the supplies on the bed next to Regulus and pulls over the chair from the desk.

Regulus doesn’t answer. Instead he looks off to the side as he holds out his right hand to Sirius, it feels cold and clammy. Sirius wants nothing more than to hug his brother but he knows that that won’t be received well. Instead he tells the other three to scram before he starts spreading a healing balm on the burns, determined that from now on things will get better. He’ll make sure of it.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> FYI: I love James I really do, James just holds very strongly to his morals and I mean Regulus is basically the equivalent of a white-supremacist at the moment so can anyone blame him for being a bit pissed?


End file.
